Vanguard Generations
by Wolf General
Summary: In a world full of demons, the human race needed their own supernatural duelists. These duelists are the Vanguards.
1. New Face

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generation

Chapter 1: New faces

_To all participants of the Crystal Ten Year Tournament,_

_Meet on July 11th at the airport. Show this letter to the man at the front and he will lead you to the starting area._

An explosion shook the large room that housed the examination area as another game-ending strike landed. "Next up!"

Shinsei Zeru sat in his chair and watched as duelist after duelist was taken down by the examiners. ("So I have to beat one of these guys before I can proceed to even get close to the tournament, huh?") He looked down at his deck box that was strapped to his side, and then he smiled calmly. ("I trust in what I've assembled.")

"Next up, Shinsei Zeru!"

Shinsei stood up slowly, and brushed his gold-black hair behind his ears. ("Alright, let's do this!") Ignoring a small group of snickers he was getting for his black leather clothing, he walked over to the nearest open examiner. "I'm Shinsei Zeru, and I'm here to show you that I'm worth the effort of handing over a ticket."

"We shall see, fool." The man wore a simple black business suit, with his long black hair braided and a pair of wire-frame glasses resting on the bridge of his nose. "You think that you have the power to match me, someone chosen by Crystal Dreams for my dueling skill?"

Shinsei removed his duel disk from its shoulder strap and slid it onto his arm, activating it immediately. "Let's duel and find out, shall we?"

"Very well, I look forward to your performance. Don't cry to me when I crush your spirit. I am Examiner Red." Red activated his duel disk and shuffled his deck. "Ready?"

Shinsei drew his opening hand. "Of course."

Shinsei- 4000

Red- 4000

Shinsei snapped the top card off of his deck and flipped it up in front of his face. ("Alright! This opening move with leave him speechless!") "I summon Elemental Hero Bubbleman (800/1200) to the field in attack mode!" A blue-armored superhero appeared on the field in a flash of bubbles and struck a strange pose. "When this monster is summoned to the field and I have no cards in play, I may draw two cards!"

Two more cards left his deck and he slid them amongst the rest. "Also, I set one card face-down on the field and end my turn." A single card flashed into existence behind the superhero.

Red blinked in surprise at this. "An Elemental Hero deck?"

Shinsei puffed out his chest and looked very proud of himself. "Isn't it awesome?"

"No. No it isn't." Red drew from his deck. "I've never seen someone ever copy the secondary deck of the champion duelist, but I suppose it would eventually have to happen. How bizarre though…you actually expect to win with this strategy?"

Shinsei blinked a couple of times in surprise. "What are you talking about? I'm not copying anyone…"

"Didn't you know that the champion's secondary deck is an Elemental Hero deck?" Red's cold smirk widened. "I see…you're just a fool who actually thinks that Elemental Hero monsters are worth the effort to run. It's pitiful really…they might be fun, but in the end they cannot stand against a serious dueling deck."

"What?" Shinsei growled and a large vein bulged out of his forehead. "I'll kill you for insulting my deck!"

"And then you would be disqualified, so shut up and tolerate my criticism." Red looked at his drawn card and then slid it into his deck. "I activate the magic card Cyclone." A sharp wind began to pick up around him. "Obviously your set card is meant to cause me problems, so I'll destroy it with this quickplay magic card." Shinsei's face-down card shattered instantly.

Shinsei paled at the loss of his Hero Signal trap card. ("And here I was ready to retaliate with my killing move in the end. Darn…")

Red slapped a card onto his disk. "I summon out Berserk Gorilla!" (2000/1000) A giant red-furred gorilla appeared on the field and roared loudly at both Shinsei and his monster. "Attack now! Berserk Beatdown!" The giant monkey slammed right into Bubbleman and blew it apart instantly. "Now I set one card face-down and end my turn."

Shinsei- 2800

Red- 4000

Shinsei braced himself against the painful pressure caused by the duel disk and instantly recovered. "I'm not afraid of you. I draw!" Looking at his drawn card, a slight smile crossed his lips. "I'll protect myself right now…with this!" His hand grasped a single card from within the six he already held. "First though, I activate the magic card Emergency Call!" A magic card with a green E appeared on the field. "This card lets me add one Elemental Hero from my deck to my hand."

His hand folded up his collective cards and he inserted the stack into his leather shirt pocket. Then he removed his deck from its slot and fanned it out in front of him. ("Let's see…which of these guys can deal with this guy's gorilla?") A big grin appeared on his face as he realized which combo he could use. Grasping his choice card, he slid his deck back in place and removed his cards from his shirt pocket.

"Hurry up and make your move, before you prove to me and the other examiners that you truly are a novice with no real skill." Red tapped his foot impatiently.

Shinsei waved a finger in the air. "Don't be too impatient, or else this won't be any fun for you! I summon Elemental Hero Sparkman (1600/1400) to the field in attack mode!" An explosion of lightning lit up the room as a superhero in blue and yellow armor appeared on the field and struck a pose. "Also, I play the equipment magic card Spark Gun!"

Sparkman lifted up its hand to reveal a strange device that looked like a gun. "This card can, three times, switch the modes of face-up monsters in play! Spark Gun activates now!" A blast of energy launched from the gun and struck the Berserk Gorilla. "Now your monster switches into defense mode! And when a Berserk Gorilla is in defense mode it is destroyed!"

"That would be true…" Red snickered and his face-down card flipped up. "If not for the fact that I knew you'd try that. Hence why I set Final Attack Orders face-down on the field. As long as this continuous trap card is in play, all monsters in play must stay in attack mode." The blast dissipated instantly into nothingness. "Anything else you'd like to waste, fool?"

Shinsei looked down at his hand and clenched his fist in anger. ("Alright…calm down, don't let your temper get the better of you in this situation. If you keep a level head then you'll be able to defeat this guy…")

"God you're a fool for thinking you could easily exploit the weakness of my Berserk Gorilla." Red scoffed and looked away from his opponent. "Barely worth the effort placing the cards on the disk."

"You big-headed, ugly…" Shinsei forget his words and had numerous veins bulging out of different parts of his face. "…idiot! I'll shut you up right now!"

"Oh really?" Red rolled his eyes. "I really doubt that."

"You want to force me to attack? Then I'll attack!" Shinsei slammed a card into his disk. "I activate the magic card Heat Heart!" Red energy flared along Sparkman's body and a magic card with a blue H on it appeared on the field for a moment. "The attack power of one monster in play is increased by 500 points!" (2100/1400) "Go Spark Slash!" Lightning launched from Sparkman's free hand as the Berserk Gorilla was blown apart instantly.

Shinsei- 2800

Red- 3900

Though on the outside Red looked surprised, inside he was smiling coldly. ("And he fell for it. Now that he's wasted the cards overwhelming something as simple as a Berserk Gorilla, I'll retaliate right now.")

"End turn." Shinsei didn't seem like he was going to calm down anytime soon.

Red drew and a deep laughter emanated from him. "You're about to lose. During my next turn I'll set you up for the ultimate fall. First though I play Graceful Charity." A glow came from his deck. "I draw three cards and then discard two from my hand." Drawing three cards, he smirked and discarded two. ("At the end of this turn, he'll be sweating bullets when I am done.") "From my hand I activate Monster Reincarnation. By discarding a card from my hand I can add my Berserk Gorilla back to my hand." Picking up the beast again, he placed it onto his disk and the giant gorilla appeared again. "And this time, it will win!"

"How do you figure that, fool?" Shinsei's eyes were dark and his expression nearly murderous.

"Allow me to show you with this! Wild Nature's Release!" Energy flowed along the body of the Berserk Gorilla. (3000/0) "This card increases the power of all Beast and Beast-warrior monsters I have in play by their defense points. At the end of this turn they all die. Now go!" Howling out a battle cry, the giant primate slammed into Sparkman and blew the superhero apart instantly.

Shinsei- 1900

Red- 3900

Shinsei braced himself and his eyes grew darker. ("I…I…") It seemed like he was suddenly surrounded by an aura of fire.

Red slid a card into his disk and then sneered. "During my end phase the effect of the two cards I discarded with Graceful Charity activates! Manticore of Darkness can by special summoned from my graveyard during the turn they are destroyed by discarding or sacrificing a beast, winged beast, or beast warrior right now!" Berserk Gorilla and a card from his hand disappeared, replaced by a pair of howling lion-like beasts. (2300/1200) "Just in case you can't see straight, I set one card face-down before. End turn."

Shinsei pointed at Red furiously. "You're about to meet your end…" His anger flared up even more. "I don't care about what kind of army you have waiting for me, I'm going to take you down!"

"Really?" Red rolled his eyes. "You're about to lose, stupid."

Shinsei's mind finally caught up the current situation…and his anger faded to nothing. "Wow…you're right…"

Red rubbed a finger under his nose. "That's right, it's over."

Shinsei looked down at his deck and then he drew. "I'm sorry about being so angry at you."

Red blinked in surprise, his momentary burst of superiority gone right there and then. "Hey…what are you talking about?"

Shinsei took a deep breath and then he went limp for a moment. When his eyes opened, a deep energy could be seen within them. Something about his expression radiated a confidence that no one could possibly hope to fake. He was about to win.

Red paled and he barely realized his hands were starting to tremble. ("What's the matter with me? Why am I scared of this kid?")

Shinsei slapped a card onto his disk. "I summon Elemental Hero Clayman (800/2000) to the field in attack mode!" A solid-bodied rock superhero appeared on the field. "Then I play Right Justice! When an Elemental Hero is in play and it's my only monster, I can destroy one magic or trap card in play!" A magic card with a big orange-red R on it appeared on the field for a moment, and then Red's face-down card shattered instantly.

Red felt his own anger flare up. "That's your big move?"

"Far from it!" Shinsei flipped over another card. "Next up Hero Call! This magic card lets me special summon one level four or lower Elemental Hero from my deck to the field!" A burst of energy came from his deck. "Elemental Hero Burst Lady (1200/800) in attack mode!" A woman wearing a tight red suit appeared on the field and flexed her hands, fire arching along her body. "Then the last piece of the set, Over Soul!" A magic card with a purple O appeared on the field for a moment. "I special summon one normal Elemental Hero from my graveyard to the field! Elemental Hero Sparkman!" The lightning superhero emerged in a flash of power, landing between Burst Lady and Clayman. "The stage is now set! If you truly believe that Elemental Heroes have no reason to be in this tournament, then let me show you the single word that gives the right to be in this battle!"

"Word?" Red was about to ask what he was talking about, but his eyes widened as Heat Heart (H), Emergency Call (E), Right Justice (R), and Over Soul (O) appeared on the field in a line. "H-E-R-O? Hero?"

"That's right." Shinsei gave Red an ominous thumbs-down. "They're Heroes! By removing the four shown cards from my graveyard, I can activate this next and final card from my hand! H-E-R-O Flash!" A swirling whirlwind came from the ground and a green-feathered superhero appeared on the field. "One Elemental Hero from my deck is summoned to the field! I think Elemental Hero Featherman (1000/1000) is appropriate!"

Red grimaced. "Have you forgotten something? My _two_ Manticore of Darkness have more attack points than all of your pitiful efforts!"

Shinsei's strangely haunting sky-blue eyes started to glow again. "You can't stop the H-E-R-O Flash that easily! During the turn it is activated, all Elemental Hero monsters in play can attack your life points directly!"

"What?" Red's eyes widened. ("I should have known about this…I should have…")

"Everyone, attack now! H-E-R-O Flash!" The four Elemental Heroes transformed into four beams of light that slammed into Red and dropped him to his knees.

Shinsei- 1900

Red- 0

As the field faded away, Shinsei walked up to Red and held out his hand. "Well, my ticket?"

Red fished a piece of paper out of his coat pocket and offered it to the boy. "Here…just go…"

Shinsei replaced his duel disk on his back again and walked off towards the gate. ("I won…but I had to show a little of my true self to do it.")

_To be continued…_

Author's Notes: To all of my continuous reviewers of my previous Yugioh stories, I'm sure some of you find it strange that the main character uses Elemental Heroes, considering my history with them. Well this story is based off of an actual Yugioh RPG I'm currently doing with my friends. My friend wanted to use E-Heroes, and I couldn't just say no. The duels are based off of what happened in the actual duels. Shinsei's player did end the duel with H-E-R-O Flash, though the circumstances were different.


	2. Battle in the Air

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Note to the readers: Ignore the information about the DDL universe in the first chapter. This entire story will be held in a different universe, if just because I learned an important lesson about having too many responsibilities in a story. Sorry folks, there won't be any of those demons you love or despise…with one exception, but that comes later.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 2: Battle in the Air

Shinsei sat back in his chair. ("This is so absolutely boring…I'd think that something would happen which would provide me with some entertainment…") A loud ding noise came from the intercom system above him.

"Attention all passengers aboard Shadow Flight twenty nine, open dueling is allowed down in the hangar bay. All duelists wishing to pass the time or improve their decks before arrival at the tournament may simply ask for permission to be allowed down into the hangar bay." Then the intercom went silent.

Shinsei smirked and stood up, whistling innocently as he walked towards the Hangar Bay of the huge jet-liner. ("This should be worth the time…")

---------------

As Shinsei walked around the expansive hangar bay of the jet-liner, he smiled at the sights that greeted him. All around this place, there were plenty of duelists who were in the middle of duels. ("And my blood is boiling just thinking about dueling one of them…") He flexed his hands and knew that it was time to find someone to fi…er, duel. ("This will be beautiful…another battle between myself and a worthy opponent…")

An explosion of air shook the inside of the hangar bay, and a scream of pain caught Shinsei's attention immediately.

A tornado flew by the boy and crashed into the metal wall of the chamber, revealing a bloodied young man who collapsed in a heap the moment he was no longer held up in the air by the tornado. ("So that's it…an opponent who likes to inflict pain on his enemies…good…") Shinsei sneered and turned to walk over to the location where the tornado had come from. ("I look forward to a duel that will test my limits and beyond…")

The standing duelist was a young man wearing a metal set of dog tags. His eyes were an emerald green and his hair was bright green and spiked up. Wearing a black and green bodysuit, he noticed Shinsei's glance and narrowed his eyes menacingly. "So you want to fight me? I can tell it in your eyes…"

Shinsei flashed a calm smile. "I'd love to beat your face in…metaphorically, of course."

"Of course…" The other boy knew the truth about what Shinsei meant. ("Something about this boy is dangerous…very dangerous. It's like watching a dangerous wild animal at work…he wants to physically fight someone.") "I am Airos Mitsunawa." Airos stepped forward and a strange distortion in the air around him built up. "You look like you wish to battle me with your hands rather than with your cards…"

"That I do…you look like you can take a hit." Shinsei cracked his knuckles. "Perhaps I'll knock you out…"

"I very much doubt that you could actually touch me with your fists, fool." Airos held up his duel disk and it activated. "So how about you stop being a fool and let's begin the game!"

Shinsei sighed and his duel disk activated. "That's fine with me, let's begin!"

As soon as the duel computers realized that they were going to duel, the ground around them warped, and it seemed like the entire airship had disappeared, replaced by nothing but the open night sky.

Airos smiled calmly. "As you should know, the area that the duelists are located in determines the zone of the duel. Because you and I are currently about twenty thousand feet in the air, the field is sky. As such, all Winged Beast, Dragons, and Thunder monsters gain a thirty percent power bonus to their original attack power."

Shinsei blinked a couple of times, and then stupidly rubbed the back of his head and laughed. "Nope, I have no clue what this tournament is about?"

Airos somehow managed to face-fall right into air. "How…how could have made it this far then?"

"I heard there was a tournament, so I decided that I would come here and give it my all, no matter what kind of tournament it was. When I found out it was a Duel Monsters tournament, I was kind of disappointed actually." Shinsei tapped the top card of his deck with a finger. "Well, are you ready to begin?"

"Yes." Airos drew the top six cards off of his deck and looked at all of them. "First, the field that represents my very powers! Rising Air Current, activate!" All around them the calm sky came alive, strong winds blowing across the field ruthlessly. "Now then, can you survive just one monster out of my deck, when the field is against you completely! Do not forget what I am about to tell you about the Sky Zone. While we are in it all monsters that are of the earth, water, or fire attribute and are not Winged Beast, Dragon, or Thunder cannot attack. With this in mind, I offer you my condolences for the fact that you will soon lose. I doubt your deck is ready for such a field."

Shinsei tapped his chin a couple of times and then shrugged. "Actually, I chose to use my Elemental Hero deck. Considering my choice, perhaps it was a foolish one. Oh well. Now come."

"As you wish!" Airos threw a card onto his disk. "Descend from the skies, Air Hunter!" (1600/600) A loud screech filled the air and a giant red-feathered hawk lowered down from the skies to the field. "Sky Zone increases its attack power by 480 points!" (2080/600) "Also, Rising Air Current's special ability raises the power of all wind attribute monsters in play 500, and lowers their defense by 400." (2580/200)

Shinsei whistled in minor amazement. "Amazing…such a big four star…"

"Don't mock me when you're the one put in the position of losing!" Airos slid two more cards into his disk. "After placing two cards face-down on the field I'll give the turn to you. Make good use of it, because when I'm done my Air Hunter will have destroyed you just like it did that last person I dueled against."

"I doubt it." Shinsei drew the top card of his deck and inserted it into his hand. "Anyway, let's get started!" As he looked at the cards in his hand, he sighed. "I hate starting defensive. I summon Elemental Hero-Shieldman (0/2500) to the field in defense mode." A superhero holding a giant shield in front of them appeared on the field. "Also, I place one card face-down on the field and end my turn." As the card appeared behind his monster, he closed his eyes. ("First he'll destroy my Draining Shield.")

"During your end phase, I reveal Dust Tornado!" A blast of wind shot up from one of Airos' two set cards and it blew the set card on Shinsei's field apart. "Also, I reveal Wingbeat of the Sky-Beasts! This trap card allows me to send one monster on the field with less attack points than a Winged Beast monster I have in play to the graveyard!" Another blast of wind slammed into Shieldman and blew it apart. "And now my turn begins!" Airos drew the top card of his deck and pointed at Shinsei. "Go Air Hunter, attack his life points directly!"

Shinsei barely flinched as the giant bird flew past him, its claws trying to stab into his skin but finding they couldn't. "You'll have to hit me harder than that to injure me."

Airos- 4000

Shinsei- 1420

Airos smirked and slid two cards into his disk. "I place two more cards face-down on the field and then I end my turn. Good luck, because next time it will be the end."

Shinsei drew, not worried at all. ("I could tell by his stance and the way he was acting so smug that he had a card combo to destroy my field. Now though, his stance has changed to a more defensive one. He knows that if I don't make some kind of upset in this turn, then I'll during the next. Considering that fact, his face-down cards are most likely a trap to stop a magic or trap card from destroying magic or trap cards, and a trap that is a back-up in case he has to clear the field.") As these thoughts flashed through his head, his eyes went from calm to just relaxed. "Hmmm…I wonder what you will do in response to this."

Airos lifted up an eyebrow, and then hardened his resolve to duel. ("No, I will not fall to you…")

"First, let's start with a personal favorite of mine!" Shinsei's field was covered in little blue bubbles, which all popped at once as a blue-armored superhero appeared on the field. "Elemental Hero-Bubbleman (800/1200) is summoned, and when he is summoned while I have no other cards on my field, I can draw more." Sliding two extra cards off of his deck, Shinsei held up another card. "I play the magic card Right Justice. When I have an Elemental Hero in play then I may destroy a magic or trap card on your field! Now to clear the card on the right…" ("Which is most likely the back-up plan card, because of how you placed it down before you put down the other one. It's the focus of your plan.")

"Reveal South Wind!" Airos' face-down card that wasn't targeted flipped up and a blast of air struck Right Justice right out of Shinsei's hand, shattering it. "This trap activates when the opponent attempts to use an effect to destroy magic or trap cards in play. The effect is negated and the activating card is destroyed!"

Shinsei knew that already. He rarely evaluated the opponent's movements incorrectly. "It doesn't matter….because it's time to get to somewhere I find more pleasant!" His field magic card opened and he slammed a card from his hand into it. "Skyscraper!" All around them, the fierce winds died down and were replaced by towering buildings. "In this place, when an Elemental Hero battles with a stronger monster they gain 1000 attack points for the fight."

Airos gritted his teeth as his field magic card was forced into the graveyard. That wasn't all either, because now the attack of his Air Hunter dropped. (2080/600) "It doesn't matter, because your monster doesn't have enough attack power even with a 1000 boost!"

"That's true…partially." Shinsei held up another card. "Bubbleman's best weapon, the Bubble Shooter!" A large bazooka with what looked to be a water cooler on top of it fell from the sky and landed on the superhero's shoulder. "This equipment magic card raises the attack power of Bubbleman by 800 points!" (1600/1200)

"That means…" Airos gritted his teeth. "You're too stupid for words." Then he started to laugh out loud. "Have you forgotten the Sky Zone so quickly? Sorry, but your monster isn't a Dragon, Winged Beast, or Thunder, so it can't attack because of its water attribute."

Shinsei's face didn't change. "I place one card face-down on the field and end my turn. Honestly, I did forget about that…but it doesn't matter because you still can't attack me as long as my power up combo is in play." As a card shimmered into existence next to Bubbleman, he closed his eyes and mentally went over his change in strategy as he applied the rules of the Sky Zone.

Airos chuckled and drew. "It's too bad, gold and black hair. You could have done so much better had you actually been paying attention to all of the rules, instead of just me. You must be a martial artist through the way that you read all of my plays…but even with that factored in I will still win thanks to my overwhelming tactics! Draw!" Looking at the drawn card, he sneered and held it up. "Terraforming lets me search my deck for one field magic card!" A card slid out of his deck and he added it to his hand. "Now I reveal my next trap card…East Wind!" A blast of air hit Shinsei's face-down card and blew it apart. "This trap destroys all face-down cards in play when activated."

("And because my trap would only work if he attacked, I can't activate it and make it a face-up card.") Shinsei gritted his teeth. "I'm not done yet!"

"Yes you are. Rising Air Current, blow down these little stone structures of his." As Airos inserted his field magic card in place, the skyscrapers around them all exploded into dust. (2580/200) "It ends here for you! Go now Air Hunter! Attack Bubbleman!" The giant hawk launched right at the superhero and slammed into it.

"Bubble Shooter activates when Bubbleman would be destroyed as a result of battle!" Shinsei pointed at the bazooka, which Bubbleman had used to block the attack. "It is destroyed instead of my monster!" The whole thing shattered…

Airos snickered. "Is that so? Think again…thanks to my quickplay magic card!" The green-haired boy held up the other card in his hand and a spear of air pierced into Bubbleman's chest, blowing it apart. "Piercing Winds activates when a Winged Beast monster on my field attacks but does not destroy the monster they battled with. The monster that survived gets killed anyway. And since that was the last card in my hand and all I have left is Rising Air Current and Air Hunter, the turn is now yours."

Shinsei stood there, his eyes narrowed. Looking down at the two cards in his hand, he smiled. ("If this was a fight…now would be the time to show off something this guy doesn't know what to do about.") Then he drew. "Heh…so I can't use water, earth, or fire attribute monsters in this place of yours?"

"You are mostly right, though you can use them. They simply cannot attack, that is all." Airos tapped his foot a couple of times. "Well? Are you just going to enjoy the night air, or will we duel like it matters?"

"Oh trust me, it matters." Shinsei held up a card. "I activate Monster Reincarnation! By discarding one card from my hand I can add one monster card from my graveyard to my hand!" He held up a normal monster card with the picture of a blue and yellow armored superhero on it. "I discard Elemental Hero Sparkman to bring back Elemental Hero Bubbleman! But don't forget Sparkman…he'll be right back!" The card in his hand changed from Sparkman to Bubbleman.

"You intend to summon that weak monster and draw two cards? How foolish…once you've draw those two cards you'll understand your mistake." Airos scoffed…until he saw Shinsei's eyes. "You actually think you will destroy Air Hunter?"

"Think? What think?" Shinsei threw a card onto his disk. "Bubbleman, let's do it!" The superhero appeared on the field again and Shinsei drew two more cards. "Now I play Fusion Sage, which allows me to search my deck for one Polymerization card and add it to my hand!" The image on the card he held up changed into the orange and blue swirl of a Polymerization card.

"A fusion? Obviously that is what you meant…but can you bring out one strong enough to defeat Air Hunter?" Airos felt uneasy now…this Shinsei no longer seemed like easy prey.

"Almost, but first I need to bring out more help!" Shinsei held up another card, this one having a picture of big blue E on it. "Emergency Call allows me to add one Elemental Hero from my deck to my hand!" A giant glowing blue E appeared in the air above him. "My choice is Elemental Hero Featherman!" A small tornado exploded underneath him, and a card shot out of his deck and into his hand. "Also, now that I have my two sure-fire cards, I play my Pot of Greed to add a little bit of chaos to the mix!" Drawing two more cards off of his deck, Shinsei smiled and leaned in towards Airos a little. "Ready, bird boy?"

Airos gulped. ("He's bringing out something big…wait…") His smile slowly returned. ("Considering what Bubbleman is, he must be planning on bringing out a water fusion. The fool…I bet he had forgotten the Sky Zone's effect again.")

"Dark Factory of Mass Production allows me to add up to two normal monsters from my graveyard into my hand!" As the card he was holding changed into Sparkman, he held up three cards from his hand. "Polymerization…fuse the power of water, wind and lightning together. Bring me a storm named Elemental Hero Tempester!" An explosion of powerful winds struck the field as a winged superhero with a blaster for one arm appeared on the field. (2800/2800) "And that isn't all, because Tempester is a wind your field magic card powers him up!" (3300/2300) "Go Chaos Tempest!" Tempester unleashed a swirling drill of blue energy that blew the Air Hunter apart.

Airos- 3280

Shinsei- 1420

Airos stood there in utter silence, his eyes wide at the loss of his monster. ("That bastard actually did it…")

Shinsei held up the last card in his hand and it started to glow. "Fusion Recovery will allow me to take back Polymerization and Sparkman into my hand. After that I place one card face-down in play. End turn." The boy seemed much more confident now that he had a monster which gained some kind of benefit from his opponent's field magic card.

Airos snapped the top card off of his deck, raging winds centered around his body only. "I'll destroy you with this card, you insect! Crown of the Skies can activate without cost if I have no cards in my hand, and it allows me to special summon King of the Skies from my deck to the field!" A loud screech filled the air as an eagle the size of a jet liner flew by, nearly knocking Shinsei over with the force of its sonic speed. "Here is where you end, gold black hair. This monster gains a special bonus when Rising Air Current is in play…which is an extra 400 attack points." (2900/1400) (3770/1400) (4270/1000) (4670/1000)

"4670 attack points?" Shinsei gritted his teeth, amazed that such a duelist could so easily bring out something stronger than Tempester with just one card.

"Go, my strongest monster! Crush him with your Royal Storm!" The giant eagle flapped its winds once, the resulting force blowing Tempester apart. "You're finished now."

"Not yet! Tempester's special ability activates now!" Shinsei's face-down Polymerization flipped up and then disappeared, while Tempester reappeared on the field. "When Tempester would be destroyed as a result of battle, I can send one card on my field to the graveyard to negate that destruction."

Airos- 3280

Shinsei- 50

Airos frowned, but nodded his head. "Very good, you managed to protect your Tempester from destruction. Now, however, the duel is in my favor. I can already see where this will go. You will set every card you draw face-down, after switching Tempester to defense mode. You'll use each and every card as a shield to keep your monster alive until you get something that will allow you to win. Fool…"

"Who said anything about that?" Shinsei drew. "I set one card face-down on the field…" His lips lifted and he pointed at the King of the Skies.

("He can't be that insane…it would kill him…") Airos stood there, slack-jawed. "You…you fool…"

"Tempester, show him why I don't like it when the opponent makes false guesses about my strategy! Chaos Tempest!" The warrior unleashed a blast of energy from his blaster, which drilled towards the giant eagle.

"Counterattack with Royal Storm!" King of the Skies screeched and flapped its wings once, sending the energy attack back at Tempester twice as fast as it had been going before.

"Tempester's special ability activates now!" Shinsei watched the approaching blast…and smirked as it dissolved into nothing when a swirling bubble of green wind came alive around Tempester's body.

"What? How did you negate the attack?" Airos didn't see how it was possible…the boy had only Sparkman in his hand, so it wasn't a quickplay magic card…

"Tempest Vortex!" Shinsei held up the card he had sacrificed to Tempester's effect. "When this card is sent from the field to the graveyard, during that turn all damage to my field is zero. However, if this card is sent to the graveyard through the effect of Tempester, then it does a little more than that…" The bubble shuddered and was sucked into Tempester's body. "Tempester, at this time, may now attack you directly!"

"What?" Airos yelped as suddenly Tempester was in front of him, the blaster inches from his face. (3300/2300) "Crap…"

Shinsei held up his right hand, the index finger and thumb out so it resembled a gun. "Bang." And then Airos disappeared within the power of the direct attack Chaos Tempest.

Airos- 0

Shinsei- 50

As the field disappeared, Airos dropped to his knees in pain. "You…beat me on my own field?"

Shinsei shrugged innocently. "My name is Shinsei Zeru. If you want revenge, get stronger. I'll be around." Then he turned and walked off, knowing he had made an enemy today… ("Which means that it was a success. You can't have fun without having a bit of conflict.")

Airos just kneeled, a slight smile on his face. ("Shinsei Zeru, huh? No…I don't need to get any stronger. You barely pulled that off with you draw. Therefore…") Slowly he stood up and brushed himself off. ("I haven't even gotten to the tournament yet and I already have a rival. Who would have thought it?")

_To be continued…_

To G.O.T. Nick: Yes and no. You know of Deondre Anderson? Yes, he is the one who contributed Shinsei Zeru, and his great dueling ability isn't just limited to my story. His real life dueling talent is amazing…though I admit it was funny when I told him I wasn't providing him with a list of fusions for the deck. It's rather funny to watch someone who knows nothing about running fusion decks play one.

To Seeker of the Soul: The more things change, the more they stay the same.

To Lucien Shadow Master: Team? Who said this tournament involved teams?

To queenofgames: Heh…errr….I'm sorry.

To Adriel Touchstone: On that note, what happened to you? No offense, but you didn't just stop updating…you seemed to drop off the planet.

To Obsessive Zero Fan: Eh, huh? Yeah, thanks for summing it up like that. Trust me, when my friends and I truly RP something out, it's a lot more intense than just "eh".

To Gryphinwyrm7: You don't always need fusion, despite what other think. The deck can duel without a single Polymerization in it, if just because of the bonus afforded by Skyscraper.

To Darksoulkai: Thanks.

To Sinister: It's not going anywhere, I just can't think 'end of the world' right now.

To Justin: Sorry, but the fifth warrior fusion deck was already determined by me. And besides, there are already two spy decks that compete against each other…why a third?

To John: The E-Heroes are warriors…

To Wolfy: There might be Cyber Dragons…there might just be.


	3. Eyes that Enchant

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 3: Eyes that Enchant; Duel of the Seer

Shinsei yawned and rubbed out his eyes, looking up at the night sky calmly. ("We flew all this distance and it's still night?") Apparently he had never heard of Time Zones. ("Hmmm…I must have slept longer on the plane than I had originally thought.")

As he walked through the airplane terminal, it was easy to notice that everyone in the whole place was either a duelist or an employee of Crystal Dreams. Apparently the owner of the company had actually succeeded in buying out the entire city for the week, just as promised in the brochure.

"Sir!" A man standing by a booth called out to Shinsei, waving his hand frantically. "You look like someone who appreciates fine merchandise!"

Shinsei stopped and pointed at himself stupidly. "Fine merchandise?"

"Yes indeed." The man pointed to his little booth, which had numerous cards in glass cases on display. "Step right up and have a look to see if any of the cards you have here might be worth your interest."

Shinsei walked up to the cases and eyed all of the cards. "Huh?" He pointed at one that he didn't understand. "What the heck is that?"

"Oh, that card?" The man chuckled and patted the boy on the back. "That card is very rare and very powerful. It's something that only a few people in the world own."

Shinsei spoke evenly, though he looked annoyed. "That's great and all, but how about you tell me what it is." His hand swept over the completely black card. The whole face of the card was black, indicating no card type or rarity. "It doesn't even have a name!"

"It's called a Soul Template Card." The man leaned in and whispered right into Shinsei's ear. "It's a new kind of card type made specifically for use by strong dueling individuals. You see, when you put the card into your deck a computer in Industrial Illusions scans your deck type and…" He went silent and glanced at the card. "…never mind, it's too complicated for me to explain to you."

Shinsei shrugged and started to walk away. "You're a strange man, asking me to come over and then telling me that you won't let me use the card. Oh well, I have to find the exit to this stupid airport terminal."

The man just stood there, glancing at the empty card case again. ("So, it has chosen him then? Very well…then he must be tested to see if he has the necessary potential to use it properly.") The man rubbed his chin gently and closed his eyes. ("Alright…he's all yours.")

A black form materialized next to him and nodded slowly. _"As you wish."_ Then it disappeared.

---------------------------

Shinsei sighed and wondered just how far it was to the exit. He had followed sign after sign after sign, only to find out ten minutes later that he was back where he had started. ("They're playing head games with us, most likely to root out the least determined duelists.") Rolling his eyes at these stupid child games, he went forward down the hallway in front of him. ("One direction is as good as any other, I'd say.")

"Hold a moment, strong sir." A voice off to his side brought him to a halt immediately. Turning his head, he saw a bundled form sitting off to the side with a table in front of them. On that table rested a deck of cards, Tarot cards, and a crystal ball. "Would you like to have your fortune read? Free of charge, of course."

"That's alright, save it for someone who cares." Shinsei kept walking…and then a tingle ran up his spine. ("Something strong is nearby…") He turned around and looked right at the bundled figure. "You know what; I'll accept your offer." Walking up to the figure, he placed his hands at his sides and smiled calmly. "Well, predict away…"

The figure moved the crystal ball to in front of them and ran their hands along it slowly, a quiet chanting coming from their lips. "I see…I see a time of strife for you. A powerful force waits in the wings, and it will not wait much longer. You must discover a power that will let you defeat this force."

"A power huh?" Shinsei punched his fist into his open hand a couple of times. "Don't worry about me, I can take care of myself."

"In this battle though, fists will not be able to determine the victor." The form moved the crystal ball aside and picked up the Tarot Cards, laying them out across the table. "I feel the deck merging with your spirit…it wishes to know more about you. As such, I will have to ask you to draw the top card of this deck to determine your own fate." They extended the deck out to him.

"Psh, fine." Shinsei pulled the top card off of the deck and held it up. For a moment the card shimmered and changed shape into a blank Duel Monsters card. "Huh? What kind of trick is that?"

"Prepare yourself, Shinsei Zeru." There was an explosion of light and when it cleared the boy was gone.

--------------------------

Shinsei opened his eyes and tried to clear the spots from his vision. "What kind of fortune teller…" His voice died down as his vision returned and he realized he was standing in a circular room surrounded by huge murals on the walls. "Now where am I?"

"You are in the Hall of Memories, a place where the chosen come to reflect." The bundled form appeared in front of him, across the room. It threw aside its coverings to reveal a purple-haired woman wearing some kind of ceremonial dress and a duel disk covering her right arm. "As I said before, prepare yourself Shinsei Zeru." Her violet eyes burned into his. "This duel will determine whether your soul shall be sealed away, or your hidden strength shall be unlocked! Place the blank card into your deck, and let the game begin!"

Shinsei grimaced and pulled out his duel disk. ("I'm not sure what's going on, but I won't turn down a challenge.") Sliding his deck into place, he ran his fingers through the stack of cards, stopped halfway through it, and inserted the blank card he was still holding into it. Then he shuffled the whole thing and smiled slightly. "Let's go then, mysterious woman."

Megumi- 4000

Shinsei- 4000

"My name is Megumi, now let the battle of judgment begin!" The woman's duel disk activated. "And I'll start!" She drew and slammed a card down onto her disk. "I bring out Manju God (1400/1000) in defense mode!" A gray-skinned monster with thousands of arms all over its body appeared on the field in a crouching position. "When this monster is summoned, I can add one ritual magic card or ritual monster card from my deck to my hand." She drew the top card of her deck and added it to her hand. "Also, I set one card face-down on the field and my turn will end."

Shinsei narrowed his eyes. ("A ritual deck? Hmmm…interesting.") Then he drew. Because of how calm this woman was, he had no idea what kind of face-down card she may have set. A normal duelist would have assumed it would be a trap to defend her monster, but he knew better. Such a creature would definitely be expendable, since it had already used its only effect.

"Well, are you going to make your move or are you simply too scared to duel?" Megumi narrowed her eyes when Shinsei smiled in response to her little jabs. ("He's very calm…like he is enjoying this. It's fine, by the time I am done he'll realize this is not a game.")

Shinsei fanned out his hand and smirked. "Let's get started with this!" A superhero holding a pair of metal revolvers appeared on the field. "Elemental Hero Gunman (1700/1200) in attack mode! Now, attack Manju God with your Double Revolver Shot!" The warrior held up both weapons and unloaded blasts of energy that slammed into the creature and blew it apart instantly. "After that I'll end my turn."

Megumi drew and looked at the card. With a slight smile on her face, she opened her field magic card slot and inserted it. "Field magic card…Church of Blessing!" All around them, the field changed shape and turned into what seemed like the interior of a church. "By discarding one card from my hand, I can search my deck for one Ritual magic card and add it to my hand!" She did so and then grinned at Shinsei. "Prepare yourself for the end. This duel has now become mine!"

"Is that so? A ritual deck doesn't frighten me." Shinsei smiled along with Gunman. "We'll defeat you."

"No, you won't." Megumi held up a card. "I activate the magic card Ritual Substitute. During this turn, I do not have to sacrifice cards to activate my ritual magic cards!" A calm smile crossed her face. "That means that this duel will soon be over for you. With the cards I have in my hand, you will find that no normal cards will be able to hurt me at all."

"All I hear from you is talk." Shinsei tapped his foot on the ground a couple of times. "How about you stop talking and do something already?"

"Very well!" Megumi held up two cards. "Stars of Heaven and Fires of Hell! Both of these ritual cards will let me summon Holy Gatekeeper and Dark Torturer!" Two giant gates, one made of gold and the other made of iron, appeared on the field at once and opened to reveal a glittering angel wearing golden robes and a demon wearing pitch black armor and holding a spear. (1900/1800) (1800/1600) "Now, attack!" The Dark Torturer leapt forward and slashed right through Gunman, blowing it apart.

Megumi- 4000

Shinsei- 3900

Megumi held up a finger and snickered. "When my Dark Torturer deals you life point damage, you must discard the top five cards of your deck to the graveyard."

Shinsei gritted his teeth and slid the top five cards off of his deck into the graveyard slot of his disk. "Is that all?"

"Of course not! Go Gatekeeper!" The angel floated over to Shinsei and sang loudly, the sound bringing him to his knees. "My other monster's ability is that when it deals you life point damage I can draw cards equal to the amount of damage you took divided by 1000, rounded down." She drew a single card and inserted it into her disk. "I set this card face-down and then my turn ends. Take your best shot, overconfident child."

Megumi- 4000

Shinsei- 2000

Shinsei closed his eyes and laughed. "Alright, I got a little too cocky…" Then he drew. "However, don't take that for weakness!" As his eyes went over his hand to revaluate his strategy, they bulged out of his head for a moment before he regained his composure. ("I drew that blank card? What the heck?")

Sighing, he took a different card from his hand and threw it down onto his disk. "I can't let myself get distracted now, so come on out Elemental Hero Bubbleman!" (800/1200) A blue-armored superhero appeared on his field and struck a pose. "When this monster is summoned, I can draw two cards from my deck if I have no other cards in play!" Sliding two cards off of his deck, he prayed that he could still duel at full power when one of the cards in his hand was literally a dead draw.

Megumi had obviously noticed the boy's reaction, and assumed he had drawn the card she had given him. ("Interesting…")

Shinsei looked at the two drawn cards, and then he inserted the blank card into his shirt pocket. ("I might as well get this thing out of the way.") Holding up another card, he smiled calmly. "I'm not one for chapels, so let's the scenery to somewhere better suited for a fight! Skyscraper!" All around them the field changed as the church was replaced by huge buildings surrounding them on all sides. "In this place, if an Elemental Hero battles with a monster that is stronger than they are, they gain 1000 attack points for the damage step!"

"So what?" Megumi pointed right at him. "Nothing you have could make your monster strong enough to stand up to mine! The best you can do is suicide Bubbleman into my Dark Torturer!"

"Is that so?" Shinsei held a card with the picture of a big blue H on it. "Heat Heart raises the attack of one monster in play by 500 and during this turn they can deal damage through defense!" (1300/1200) "Go Bubbleman, attack the Gatekeeper!" (2300/1200) The superhero aimed its little wrist weapon at the angel. "Bubble Shooter!"

"Reveal face-down card! Heaven and Hell in Peril!" One of Megumi's two face-down cards flipped up and the field froze. "This trap card will activate only if I have one dark ritual monster and one light ritual monster in play and one of them is attacked. All monsters in attack mode on your field will now be destroyed!" Bubbleman shuddered in pain and started to dissolve.

"Not so fast!" Shinsei slammed a card into his disk. "Go Bubble Illusion! This quickplay magic card can only be activated if Elemental Hero Bubbleman is in play! It allows me to play a trap card from my hand right now! So my choice is Invincible Hero!" A golden aura exploded to life around Bubbleman and he stopped dissolving. "During this turn, Bubbleman can't be destroyed. And that means battle continues!" A stream of water came from Bubbleman's blaster and it blew the Gatekeeper apart.

Megumi- 3600

Shinsei- 2000

Megumi pointed at her face-down card. "Reveal Sacrificial Living! This card can return one ritual monster that was destroyed as a result of battle to the field!" There was a flash of light and the Gatekeeper reappeared in play.

Shinsei grimaced and slid a card into his disk. "I place one card face-down on the field and then I end my turn."

Megumi drew. "This is where the duel starts to get interesting! I play the magic card Heaven-Hell! This continuous magic card forces both duelists to remove all monsters from their deck, and all monsters in play will be destroyed!" Bubbleman, Dark Torturer, and the Gatekeeper all screamed in pain as they exploded into dust.

Shinsei just stood there, eyes wide. "You'd destroy all of our monsters when you have no cards in your hand? You're crazy…"

"I'm far from crazy." Megumi pointed at the Heaven-Hell card, which still remained in play. "This card is a continuous magic card, which means that both of us can special summon one monster from our graveyard during our turn. Are you ready?" The Dark Torturer returned to the field and lifted its spear. "Now take this! Spear Strike!" It yelled out and stabbed its spear right into Shinsei's gut, dropping him to his knees. "End turn."

Megumi- 3600

Shinsei- 200

Megumi noticed that Shinsei was having trouble standing up. "Discard the top five cards of your deck please."

Shinsei, with shaking hands, somehow managed to do that and also stand up. "It's my turn!" He drew and looked at the drawn card hopefully. ("She has destroyed our chances of any kind of monster Topdeck…") His lips curled up slightly. "Interesting situation! First I play Pot of Greed!" He drew the top two cards of his deck.

"Then I activate the power of my Hero Phoenix magic card. By using it, I can add one fire attribute Elemental Hero from my graveyard to my hand." He held up Elemental Hero Gunman, and then pointed at his field. "Revive yourself, Bubbleman!" There was a flash of light as the superhero formed in play. "Now I summon Elemental Hero Gunman back to the field!" The double gun-holding superhero appeared next to its ally.

Megumi paled in fear. ("That means…")

"Elemental Hero Bubbleman, attack the Dark Torturer! Bubble Shooter!" The superhero released a spray of water that hit the demon at the same time the demon tackled the superhero. (1800/1200) Both of them exploded into dust, and then Gunman aimed right at Megumi's chest and fired, striking her with bullets of energy.

Megumi- 1900

Shinsei- 200

Shinsei slid a card into his disk and then inserted another in next to it. "Now I set two cards face-down. End turn."

Megumi smiled coldly. She drew and held up Pot of Greed, drawing two more cards. "This duel is nearing the end for you."

"How do you figure that?" Shinsei smiled back. "I'm far from done, and with my Skyscraper in play Gunman will become a 2700 if attacked by either of your ritual monsters."

Megumi tittered and slid a card into her disk. "I set one card face-down on the field and then I'll activate my Giant Trunade magic card, sending all magic and trap cards on the field back to their owner's hands!" All around them the field morphed and warped as Skyscraper left play.

Shinsei's eyes widened as he realized why she had done that. "Oh no…"

"Firstly, my Map of Buried Treasure trap card activates when it is sent face-down on the field and back to my hand. I can discard it to draw two cards." Megumi discarded the trap and added two more cards to her hand.

Shinsei looked down at the four cards in his hand and then felt some sweat drip down his face. ("This might be the end…")

"I activate the magic card Heaven-Hell!" Megumi laughed loudly as Gunman exploded into dust. "This is the end, for now my Dark Torturer returns to play!" The demon appeared out of the ground and hefted its spear up, howling for blood. "Your duel ends here…as does your life! Without any monsters or cards in play, you lose! Go Dark Torturer!" The demon charged at Shinsei and roared again, spear held up high.

_To be continued…_

To Darksoulkai: It's a shame you don't like the Elemental Heroes.

To Seeker of the Soul: Shinsei isn't one to freak out under pressure, at least not the pressure of dueling someone normal…err, kinda normal.

To john: Hence why they are all the same type.

To Justin: I guess so…couldn't you have made one out of something other than MSG stuff?

To Dais: Of course I have bigger things planned.

To Disciple of Bob: I'll be accepting custom characters, but whether I will use them or not I'm not totally sure. As for my fanbase….there isn't any secret to it. I don't influence or know why people read my stories. Where am I holding the RPG? Huh? Why, do you intend to show up and do it with me and my friends?


	4. Hanging on by a thread

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 4: Hanging on by a thread

_Megumi tittered and slid a card into her disk. "I set one card face-down on the field and then I'll activate my Giant Trunade magic card, sending all magic and trap cards on the field back to their owner's hands!" All around them the field morphed and warped as Skyscraper left play._

_Shinsei's eyes widened as he realized why she had done that. "Oh no…"_

"_Firstly, my Map of Buried Treasure trap card activates when it is sent face-down on the field and back to my hand. I can discard it to draw two cards." Megumi discarded the trap and added two more cards to her hand._

_Shinsei looked down at the four cards in his hand and then felt some sweat drip down his face. ("This might be the end…")_

"_I activate the magic card Heaven-Hell!" Megumi laughed loudly as Gunman exploded into dust. "This is the end, for now my Dark Torturer returns to play!" The demon appeared out of the ground and hefted its spear up, howling for blood. "Your duel ends here…as does your life! Without any monsters or cards in play, you lose! Go Dark Torturer!" The demon charged at Shinsei and roared again, spear held up high._

Shinsei threw up one card from his hand and Bubbleman appeared on the field just in time to get pierced by the spear of the Dark Torturer and blown apart. "The trap card you sent back to my hand was Hero's Memorial, which when returned to my hand while face-down allows me to discard it to special summon one Elemental Hero from my graveyard to the field in defense mode!"

"But my monster can deal damage through defense, how did you survive the overflow damage?" Megumi yelled at him, and he replied by laughing. "What's so funny?"

"Your own magic card caused that to happen." He held up Hero's Memorial, which had a picture of a statue of Shining Flare Wingman standing tall in front of a town hall. "You see, when Hero's Memorial is returned to my hand by the effect of an opponent, all battle damage to me for that turn is zero if I discard it. And because Elemental Hero Bubbleman was summoned, I can now draw two cards!" Sliding two more cards off of his deck, he winked at her. "Sorry, but I'm not so easy to defeat."

She smiled slightly and slid two cards into her disk. "I set two cards face-down on the field and then I'll end my turn." As the two cards shimmered into existence on the right side of Heaven-Hell, she returned the wink. "You'll need more than charming good looks and a good outlook on dueling to survive this duel against me."

Shinsei drew. "First, let's return Elemental Hero Bubbleman from my graveyard to the field!" The blue superhero reappeared in another burst of blue bubbles. "And as before, because I have no other cards in play, I can now draw two!" Sliding two more cards off of his deck, the boy added them to his hand. "Alright, I'm ready to attack with my full power against you! First I activate my Metamorphosis magic card! This card allows me to sacrifice one monster in play to special summon a monster of the same level from my fusion deck! And my choice is…" Bubbleman's armor grew sharper and much stronger looking. (800/1200) "Bubbleman Neo!"

"Bubbleman Neo? But his attack points are the same as before. Even if you replayed Skyscraper and attacked, all you would succeed in doing is destroying both of our monsters." Megumi crossed her arms across her chest and eyed the supercharged-looking Bubbleman.

Shinsei held up another card. "We'll see about that! Go Bubble Shooter!" A giant bazooka-like device fell from the sky and landed over the shoulder of the superhero. "Because Bubbleman Neo counts as Bubbleman, he can be equipped with this card! This card increases the attack power of Bubbleman Neo by 800 points!" (1600/1200)

"Also, let's take this to the right ground!" He opened his field magic card slot and slammed Skyscraper into it, the land around them changing to the cityscape that powered up all Elemental Heroes by 1000 points when they battled against stronger monsters.

Megumi gasped in amazement. "No!"

"Yes! Bubble Shooter!" Shinsei pointed at the Dark Torturer and Bubbleman Neo's weapon unleashed an explosive blast of water that hurtled towards it. (2600/1200)

"Reveal face-down card!" One of Megumi's face-down cards flipped up and a blast of red light shot from the card, piercing Bubbleman Neo's chest and dissolving him into nothing. "Hell Prejudice allows me to call one word, and all cards with that word in it that are in play or in the graveyard are removed from the game! I call Bubble!"

Shinsei stood there in silence, a wind blowing some dust across his now empty field. ("She blew away not only Bubbleman Neo, but the Bubbleman in my graveyard.") "I'm not done yet!"

"And neither am I!" Megumi's other face-down card flipped up. "Reveal Heaven's Last Treasure! This card activates when I remove cards from both your field and graveyard with the same effect. For every card remove, I can draw one card. Now name the cards you lost."

Shinsei snarled and started to count off the cards that had disappeared. "Bubbleman, Bubbleman Neo, Bubble Shooter, Bubble Shuffle, and Bubble Illusion." As he ticked the names off on one hand, she drew a card for every name he spoke.

Megumi looked at her new five cards and smirked at him. "What will you do now?"

("She has five cards in her hand…") Looking down at his hand, Shinsei's eyes widened slightly. ("That combo will work now!") "I first play Warrior Returning Alive to pick up one Elemental Hero from my graveyard and add it to my hand!" Holding up a new card, he threw it onto his disk. "I owe this to your Dark Torturer for getting it into the graveyard! Go Elemental Hero Wildman!" (1500/1600) A brown-skinned jungle man with a sword strapped over its shoulders appeared on the field. "Also, I set four cards face-down in play and then I end my turn."

Megumi snickered. "Is this your last chance to win?" She drew. "Then get ready to lose!"

"Not yet! Reveal face-down card!" One of Shinsei's face-down cards flipped up. "Greed Illusion! This continuous trap card activates during your standby phase and can only work if I have no cards in my hand, otherwise it is destroyed! I draw until I have the same number of cards in my hand as you, and then during my standby phase I must discard that same number of cards from my hand!" He slid six cards off of his deck. "Alright, continue."

Megumi licked her lips and held up a card. "First, that Skyscraper is getting on my nerves, so here comes my Hell Desecration magic card! This card removes all field magic cards in play from the game!" All around them, the huge buildings of Skyscraper dissolved into nothingness. "Now that your annoying little endless power-up effect is gone, it's time to finish off the last little sliver of life points you have left! Revive, my Heaven Gatekeeper!" The angelic ritual monster appeared next to her Dark Torturer. (1900/1800) "Now let's continue the game! Go Dark Torturer! End this duel now!" The demon charged in and stabbed Wildman right in the gut with its spear. "Your life points are gone."

"Not yet!" One of Shinsei's face-down cards flipped up and blew the demon back to Megumi's field. "Negate Attack will stop your attack and end the battle phase."

Megumi slid a card into her disk. "Very well, but I shall bring out my field magic card now that I know you just used up one of your defensive trap cards!" Her field magic card zone opened and she slid a card into it. "Go Purgatory!" All around them, the air grew hazy with golden flames. "Within this place both Hell and Heaven are one, and therefore the effects of both pain and pleasure exist within this card. It can only be activated when Heaven-Hell is in play, and it sends it to the graveyard!"

The continuous magic card faded away. "Purgatory copies the effect of Heaven-Hell, and it also adds a new effect. When a monster is special summoned from our graveyard and we have more than one monster on our field, we must sacrifice one monster. In return for this pain, we gain life points equal to the attack of the sacrificed monster!"

Shinsei knew this effect was good for both of them, but he was sure that Megumi's entire deck was made to use this to her advantage. "And what are you playing to gain an advantage?"

"I'm playing my continuous magic card called Forbidden Pleasures. This card activates when a magic or trap effect requires that I sacrifice a monster on my field. I can instead sacrifice the top three cards of my deck, and if the effect is supposed to give me an increase then depending on what kind of increase it is decides what happens. If I am to gain life points, then I gain 3000 life points if the number is determined by something about the sacrificed monster."

("So every time she special summons from her graveyard, she discards the top three cards of her deck to gain 3000 life points….freaking perfect.") Shinsei bit his lower lip and looked down at his hand. ("At least she can't attack.")

Megumi held up another card from her hand. "Now I play my Purgatory Reset card, which puts us back into a phase that was ended because of a card effect. So we'll return to the battle phase from before! Go Dark Torturer!" The demon howled and charged right at Wildman, weapon held up high to strike.

"Reveal Reduction Barrier!" Shinsei pointed at one of his now face-up trap cards. "This card allows me to cut the damage I take from battle during this turn to one tenth its original amount! In response I reveal Emergency Provisions as well! By sacrificing my Greed Illusion and Reduction Barrier in chain, I can also gain 2000 life points!"

Megumi- 1900

Shinsei- 2200

Then the Dark Torturer pierced Wildman's chest with its spear and blew the hero apart.

Megumi- 1900

Shinsei- 2170

Megumi snapped up her free hand at Shinsei. "Dark Torturer's special ability activates now! My opponent, when they take battle damage from my monster, discards the top five cards of their deck!"

Shinsei grimaced and did so, feeling the sweat on his forehead build up at the fact that he wasn't going to last much longer against this opponent unless he managed to draw something to overpower her monsters and her strategy.

"Go Heaven Gatekeeper!" The holy angel sang out and Shinsei shivered as the Reduction Barrier reduced the normally painful music to a simple chilling tune.

Megumi- 1900

Shinsei- 1980

Megumi ran her slim fingers along the edges of her cards slowly. "It's a shame you buffered the damage enough that I couldn't draw an extra card, but in the end it doesn't matter. You see, I have plenty of cards still in my hand." She inserted two cards into her duel disk. "I place two cards face-down on the field and then I end my turn."

Shinsei took a deep breath to clear his mind. ("This isn't done yet. I am not alone in this battle.") He drew. "First I'll use the effect of Heaven-Hell to revive one of the Elemental Heroes that your Torturer discarded to the graveyard!" A roar of anger filled the air as a giant warrior holding a giant hammer over shoulder appeared on the field. "Elemental Hero Rageman!" (2000/0) "Also, I play the magic card Hero Return! When there are no magic or trap cards on my field, I can special summon one level four or lower Elemental Hero to the field! So return to me, Elemental Hero Gunman!" (1700/1200) The double revolver superhero appeared on the field once more.

"Those two aren't going to be enough…" Megumi started to laugh, until she saw that Shinsei was holding another card up. "Spark Gun?"

"This card would normally require that Elemental Hero Sparkman is in play, but in this case I can equip it to Gunman because of his effect!" A machine-gun like weapon appeared in place of one of the superhero's revolvers. "With this card I'll switch Dark Torturer into defense mode!"

A blast of blue energy shot from the weapon and hit the demon, forcing it to crouch down on the field. "Go now, Rageman!" The giant roared and charged right at the Heaven Gatekeeper. "When Rageman attacks a monster on the opponent's field, he gains half of that monster's attack points!" (2950/0) "Hammer of Destruction!"

"Reverse card open!" One of Megumi's face-down cards flipped up and Rageman exploded into dust. "The power of my Hellfire Blaze trap card can only activate if I have a dark ritual monster in play. One monster in play will be destroyed!"

Shinsei pointed at the Dark Torturer. "Go Gunman, fire!"

"Reveal Golden Light of Heaven!" A golden glow suffused the other superhero and it disappeared. "This trap card is just like my Hellfire Blaze, except it requires that a light ritual monster be in play."

Shinsei stood there silently, his eyes wide. ("What can I do now? She's shot down every one of my strategies…and with all the monsters in my deck removed from the game, I'm eventually going to run out of cards.") Then his eyes hardened and he shook his head out. ("No! I can't let my self fear this lady! There must be a way to beat her permanently!")

"I play the magic card Monster Reincarnation, which lets me discard a card from my hand to add one monster from my graveyard to my hand. I discard my Hero's Dramatic Entrance trap card to add Elemental Hero Nightman from my graveyard to my hand!" He added the new card to his hand and then threw it onto his disk. "Go Nightman!" (200/900)

A pitch-dark superhero appeared on the field, an aura of black energy flowing along its body. "This monster, when summoned and I have no cards in play, allows me to draw three cards as long as I discard all monsters from my hand afterwards. Since I have no monsters in my hand at the moment and there are no monsters in my deck, I just get to draw three cards!" Sliding three new cards off of his deck, he added them to his hand. And then he noticed a black sheen instead of a picture for one of the cards. "How did this card get in my…" His eyes bugged out and he face-fell. "I cheated!"

"Cheated?" Megumi lifted up an eyebrow at the boy. "What are you talking about?"

Shinsei, with huge anime tears dripping down his face, pulled the blank-faced card out of his shirt pocket. "I put this there so it wouldn't be in the way, and I forgot about it! And my Greed Illusion trap card wouldn't have worked because…because…" He hung his head and sighed. "I guess I lost already, huh?"

"Don't worry about it." Megumi smiled at how surprisingly honest this boy was being. She hadn't noticed what he had done, and he would have gotten away with it had he kept his mouth shut. "Since you told me, I'll just pretend it didn't happen."

Shinsei took a deep breath and then lifted his head back up. "Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure, now hurry up and make your next move!" Megumi pointed at his chest. "I want to defeat you with my full power and with a true win, not some pitiful technicality!"

"Just because you asked for it, here's my full power!" Snapping up a card, Shinsei smirked as a huge red R appeared in air above him. "Right Justice will destroy Purgatory and put this game back to normal!" All around them, the golden fires instantly went out. "Now I set three face-down cards and end my turn."

Megumi drew. "I play the magic card Return to the Border between Worlds! One field magic card that normally requires a special sacrifice to be played that is in the graveyard is activated now! Return Purgatory to its former glory!" All around them the golden fires came alive once more. "Purgatory doesn't share the effect of my Heaven-Hell card, so you don't have to worry about your only monster being destroyed."

Shinsei could actually feel the fires now, and that worried him. Somewhere, deep inside his heart, he knew this was different than a normal duel. The blows hurt more than they should have, and the monsters felt much more real than normal.

Megumi pointed at Nightman. "After switching my Dark Torturer into attack mode I go after your life points! Go now!" The demon howled and it ran right at the superhero.

_To be continued…_

To Justin: I might put Kyle in…maybe. I honestly have no idea where to put him.

To Seeker of the Soul: I thought you might like these two ritual monsters and their powers.

To Darksoulkai: I'm not so sure…other than a scant few E-Heroes in his graveyard thanks to Dark Torturer, he won't be drawing any assistance during this duel.

To John: How is that you always seem to say things that make no sense?


	5. Twilight Companion

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 5: Twilight Companion

_Megumi drew. "Let's go! I play the magic card Return to the Border between Worlds! One field magic card that normally requires a special sacrifice to be played that is in the graveyard is activated now! Return Purgatory to its former glory!" All around them the golden fires came alive once more. "Of course, Purgatory doesn't share the effect of my Heaven-Hell card, so you don't have to worry about your only monster being destroyed."_

_Shinsei could actually feel the fires now, and that worried him. Somewhere, deep inside his heart, he knew this was different than a normal duel. The blows hurt more than they should have, and the monsters felt much more real than normal. _

_Megumi pointed at Nightman. "After switching my Dark Torturer into attack mode I go after your life points! Go now!" The demon howled and it ran right at the superhero._

"Reveal Mirror Gate!" One of Shinsei's face-down cards flipped up and suddenly it seemed like the world inverted. When the inversion cleared Nightman was on Megumi's field and the Dark Torturer was on Shinsei's field. "This trap card's special ability is that when activated it can force our monsters to switch sides on the field, and then after that battle continues!"

Megumi gasped in surprise and almost on instinct slammed the last card in her hand into her disk. "I activate my Hell Return quickplay magic card!" Nightman exploded into dust and the Dark Torturer appeared on her field. "This trap card will return Dark Torturer to my control at the cost of one monster! Go now and end this!" The demon cackled and charged again, spear aimed right for Shinsei's chest.

"Reverse card open!" One of Shinsei's remaining face-down cards flipped up and a giant wall of glowing energy appeared in front of the Heaven Gatekeeper. "Kinetic Barrier is a trap that lets me sacrifice magic or trap cards on my field to prevent a monster per card from attacking. So I sacrifice my face-down card, Clay Wrap, to prevent your Gatekeeper from coming after me!" Then the spear slammed right into his diaphragm and he gasped in pain, dropping to one knee.

Megumi- 1900

Shinsei- 180

Megumi smirked and was about to tell him to discard the top five cards of his deck, but went silent as her Forbidden Pleasures card shattered. "How?"

"Clay Wrap…" Shinsei still was having trouble drawing breath, but he refused to give up yet. "When sent to the graveyard…destroys one magic or trap card in play." His shaky left hand slid the top five cards off of his deck and he discarded them all. ("That's almost it…I'm done.") His entire body hurt all over, and he didn't know what else he could possibly do to fight back against this woman. As he looked at the blank white card and blank black cards that were in his hand, he rolled his eyes at how much of a waste they were. ("What can I possibly do with these two?")

Then a mental kick to the ass came to him. ("Wait a second…I forgot all about that other card!") He slowly stood up and exhaled sharply, letting all of his tensions out at once. "I'm sorry, but now I have to take you down."

"What?" Megumi's eyes widened at the confidence in the boy's eyes. ("What does he have?")

Shinsei drew. "I play Polymerization!"

She face-fell, hard. "What? You don't have any monsters in your hand or field!"

"That's true…" Shinsei smiled and inserted the magic card into his graveyard. "I guess we'd better hope for the best!" Fire exploded out of his graveyard slot and up high into the air. An unearthly screech filled the room and the fire took the shape of a giant bird. "Hero Phoenix's special ability activates now! By discarding one Polymerization card from my hand to the graveyard, I can remove it from my graveyard to fuse monsters in my graveyard together!" The huge firebird shape screeched once more and launched into his graveyard slot. "I remove Burst Lady, Gunman and Featherman from the game!" The phoenix emerged once more, and when it reached the apex of its flight the fire disappeared, replaced by a red and orange version of Featherman holding two incredibly long-barreled pistols. "Elemental Hero Phoenix Shooter!" (1300/1300)

"You managed to make a fusion in these circumstances?" Megumi's eyes widened as Phoenix Shooter flapped its wings and energy ran up and down its body. "What's happening?"

"The first ability of Phoenix Shooter increases its attack power by 100 points for every monster in my removed from play pile!" Shinsei smiled wryly. "That's twenty-three, in case you weren't keeping track!" (3600/1300)

"3750 attack points?" Megumi's eyes went huge. "Impossible…"

"Nothing is impossible! Now, go Phoenix Shooter!" The Elemental Hero aimed both of its guns at the Dark Torturer. "Flames of Rebirth!" Then energy was flying from both barrels, the power enough to instantly vaporize the demon.

Megumi- 100

Shinsei- 180

Shinsei smiled calmly as his body became surrounded by a sheath of glowing red-orange flames. "When Phoenix Shooter destroys a monster as a result of battle, I gain that monster's attack in life points and the destroyed monster is removed from the game."

Megumi- 100

Shinsei- 1980

Megumi felt sweat dripping down her face. ("What an incredible boy…how could he so quickly turn the tides? Now I have no choice to switch my monster to defense mode, and all I can do now is…") She tightened her fists. "I'm far from done with this."

"I bet so." Shinsei slid a card from his hand into his disk. "I set one card face-down on the field and end my turn."

Megumi drew and looked at the drawn card hopefully. Her eyes widened at what she saw. "Now I can show you exactly what you will be facing!"

"Huh?" If a huge question mark could have appeared over Shinsei's head, it would have.

"It would be better if I just played this card, rather then tried to explain it! Go Familiar Summon!" Energy lined the body of her monster, and then it exploded into dust. "By sacrificing one monster on the field, I can activate the special ability of this very unique magic card. I now reach into the space between the world of Duel Monsters and the world of humans…" A powerful aura of purple energy exploded to life around her. "By paying half of my life points, I can special summon my partner to the field!"

Megumi- 50

Shinsei- 1980

"Your partner?" Shinsei lifted up an eyebrow, and then gasped as the aura separated from Megumi's body and lowered to her monster field. It formed into a portal and from within that portal a humanoid form emerged onto the field.

It would have been a normal human woman, if not for the white wing and black wing on its back, along with the inhumanly holy song that it was singing, even though its mouth wasn't moving. "I am _Hantenshi_. And you, who fights against my partner, must be defeated." (2100/1700)

Shinsei sweat-dropped at the fact that the monster was talking to him, but he shook it off and sighed. "Um…not to nitpick and all, but your monster can't possibly hope to compete with Phoenix Shooter."

"With her current strength, that is very true." Megumi and Hantenshi both smiled at once. "However..." They said in unison. "Our ability will defeat you."

"Ability?" Shinsei was starting to get very creeped out by how these two were acting…and just by the mere fact that a Duel Monster was talking at all.

"When Hantenshi is in play, her attack score is increased by the number of cards in my removed from play pile times 100, while her defense is increased by the number of cards in my graveyard times 100. For both the forsaken and the lost, she will strengthen herself." Hantenshi's black wing stretched out and grew in size. (3800/1700) Then the white wing stretched out and grew in size. (3800/3800)

"3800 attack points?" Shinsei gritted his teeth as he watched black fire appear in Hantenshi's hand. ("Oh crap…")

"Go partner, attack!" Megumi smirked as the half angel unleashed a blazing fireball of black fire that hurtled towards Shinsei's fusion monster like a missile. "This is the end for you."

"Reverse card open!" Shinsei's face-down card snapped up and a glowing barrier of energy appeared in front of him. "Hero Barrier negates your attack because there is an Elemental Hero in play!" The fireball hit the barrier and then faded, though for a moment it seemed like the barrier was going to break under the pressure.

Hantenshi pursed her lips and looked back at Megumi. "My apologies for not being to penetrate his trap card's effect. Apparently his will is very strong."

"I can tell that from here." Megumi motioned to Shinsei. "The turn is yours."

Shinsei drew, though he suddenly felt like he was completely outclassed. ("It's just one monster…but why do I feel so uneasy while it is near me. It's like the monsters I have in play aren't enough to fight this woman.") Looking at the two blank cards in his hand, he brushed them aside mentally and twisted Phoenix Shooter's card to the side. "I switch Phoenix Shooter into defense mode." The winged superhero dropped to one knee and folded its wings in front of it. "Also, I place one card face-down on the field and then I'll end my turn."

Megumi chuckled. "Are you sure that will be enough to keep your alive during this turn?"

"Yeah, it will be enough." Shinsei bit his lower lip as that feeling of being incredibly outgunned got bigger and bigger. ("This lady has some serious power behind her draw, and that talking Duel Monster must have something to do with it!")

Megumi drew. "Are you ready to begin, boy? Because I just drew another important card…a technique magic card."

"Technique magic card?" Shinsei tilted his head to the side. "I've heard of techniques, and magic cards…but a magic card that is a technique?"

"Correct." The woman held up the magic card and it started to glow. "This card's special ability will allow Hantenshi to trigger one of her best attacks! Activate Heavenly Voice of Discord!" The card shimmered and faded away. "One monster in play will destroyed, and its attack will be dealt in damage to your life points. Also, I will gain life points equal to the defense of the destroyed monster!"

Hantenshi spread out her wings and started to sing loudly, energy building around her body in waves. Then with one explosive release there was a thrumming stream of light heading towards Phoenix Shooter.

Megumi pumped her fist into the air. "This is it!"

"Not yet! Reveal De-Fusion!" Shinsei's face-down card flipped up and his Phoenix Shooter turned into a ball of light, which then popped like a balloon. "I break down my monster's fusion, though because the monsters that make up Phoenix Shooter are removed from the game, I simply remove Phoenix Shooter from the field."

Megumi gritted her teeth angrily. "You're one lucky weakling, you know that right? Because Heavenly Voice of Discord prevents me from attacking during this turn, I'll just have to end it there." She closed her eyes and smiled slightly, because all he had in his hand were the two blank cards from before.

Shinsei looked down at his deck and sighed, drawing. ("No point in getting scared, at this point I can't look back or feel regret. There must be a way to end this duel right now!")

Megumi was suddenly wreathed in that aura again, and it was much stronger. In fact it was so strong that Shinsei was actually forced to his knees. "You won't beat me, boy. My level of spiritual energy is far above yours, and my Guardian is also much stronger than any monster your deck could create."

"God, just shut up…" Shinsei tried to stand and dropped to his knees again. "I'm not going to give up, so give it a freaking rest."

_("I couldn't have said it better myself, that I could not.")_ A voice echoed in Shinsei's mind.

Shinsei blinked and looked around. ("I must he having flashbacks of…") Shaking his head out, he pointed right at Megumi. "Anyway, you talk too much crap without anything to back it up, and I'll make you pay for it right now!"

Megumi started to speak, but then stopped as she saw a very thin aura of orange-red energy spring to life around Shinsei's body. ("Where I felt no power before…now I can feel it…")

Hantenshi snapped her wings up and got ready, because she could feel the arriving source of energy.

Shinsei felt it now…something was waking up within him. ("Who are you? Why are you in my body?")

_("My name is…actually, that's a good question. I suppose you have to name me, that you do.")_ The voice spoke so casually that Shinsei wondered if he had lost his mind. _("Oh, I'm sorry! I'm sure you think that you are crazy…")_

("Think? I know I'm crazy.") Shinsei looked down at his hand and his eyes widened at the mild red glow coming from the blank white card. ("Why is it glowing like that?")

_("Anyway, shall we defeat this woman and her Guardian?")_ The voice was so cheerful about it…and it was so familiar. Where had he heard it before?

Megumi smiled as she watched the aura expand even larger. ("It's awake now…")

Shinsei closed his eyes and took a deep breath. ("I want to beat her, so I'll put my doubt aside and play you!") His eyes snapped open and he grabbed the no longer blank card. "First I play Joyous Rebirth to revive one monster from my graveyard to the field in defense mode! Elemental Hero Nightman!" The dark-colored superhero appeared and he drew three cards. "Now I play Familiar Summon!" Nightman exploded into dust. "I offer one monster and half of my life points! Emerge now!"

A pair of wood-frame Japanese sliding doors appeared in mid-air on his field and slowly slid open to reveal a man who looked to be about in his early twenties. He had calm blue eyes and a head full of long red hair. Across his fair face there was a single cross-cut scar, and attached to the side of his richly purple/pink kimono there rested a katana.

Shinsei stared at the form with huge eyes as he instantly recognized who it was…but that couldn't be possible. "You're a fictional character…"

"Fictional?" The man turned and then looked down at himself. "I'm pretty sure I'm quite real, that I am."

Shinsei stomped up to the man and pointed right at him. "That's not what I meant! I mean, you're from my favorite manga! Therefore, you are a fictional character!" He crossed his arms across his chest. "And why am I yelling at you, since you're not real?"

Megumi wasn't sure why the boy was so freaked out about the appearance of his Guardian. ("It's a samurai, so what? I've seen much weirder and most of them aren't even human normally.")

The man shrugged at Shinsei's last question. "I was given this form and personality by your subconscious upon my birth. I didn't decide how I would come out, that I did not."

"Argh!" Shinsei threw up his hands. "Stop talking like that! You're not Kenshin Himura!"

"Who?" The Kenshin look-alike tilted his head to the side, looking ridiculously innocent now. Then he suddenly pounded a fist down into his open hand. "I see! You are confused because I must look just like the character your soul chose when it was time for it to decide upon a Guardian. You'll have to forgive my original ignorance, that you will."

"I'll kill you, plain and simple." Shinsei pointed right at the look-alike, though at this range his finger nearly went up the other man's nose because of it. "You cannot be Kenshin Himura, because he is a character from my favorite anime and not a Duel Monster, which you must be because I summoned you with a magic card, did I not?"

"That you did indeed, but I still am apparently this Kenshin Himura you continue to speak of." He closed his eyes and nodded sagely at his own 'wisdom'. "Apparently you lack the proper imagination to come up with an original Guardian, so your soul took the form of someone or something you looked up to and imprinted that into my design."

"Lack of imagination?" Shinsei cracked his knuckles. "I'll 'lack of imagination' you!" He was about to throw his fist, but his mind gave him a little mental reminder that he was still in the middle of a duel. "Screw it, just stop acting like you're someone you're not." Walking back over to his space on the field, he turned and held up his remaining four hand cards. "Alright, just freaking introduce yourself like the other one did."

"As you wish." The man turned to face both Hantenshi and Megumi. "My name is Kenshin; Samurai of Twilight!" (1800/1600) He ignored Shinsei's apparently now instinctive reaction of screaming "you're not Kenshin!" and placed his hand on the hilt of his katana. "Now then, I've been watching the duel from afar and I believe this would our endgame, correct?"

"That's right." Megumi and Hantenshi both replied. "It's nearly over for both of you. You have come too late to defeat us."

"Is that so?" Kenshin glanced back at Shinsei, who still had veins bulging out of his forehead. "Now is not the time to act surprised, that it isn't. Since this is the first time I have been summoned, we don't have access to any techniques or special items. As such, we'll have to make good use of my special abilities to win this game."

Shinsei looked down at the card that had somehow mysteriously appeared on his duel disk. Reading the text of the card, his eyes widened. ("This guy, fake or not, is really good!") He held up a card from his hand. "I activate the magic card Spell Reproduction! By discarding two magic cards from my hand I can add one magic card from my graveyard to my hand!"

He held up Pot of Greed. "Also, one of the magic cards I discarded was Repayment of Losses, so I draw an extra card." Looking at the two new cards in his hand, he slid one card into his disk and then held up Pot of Greed. "I draw two cards." He held up two cards. "Research on the Pot of Greed and Serial Spell. This combo lets me discard the remaining card in my hand to play another Research on the Pot of Greed. Research on the Pot of Greed lets me draw two cards if I played Pot of Greed during this turn. And since it activates twice, I draw four cards." Sliding four cards off of his deck, he looked at all of them and then smiled slightly. "It will be just enough to win this duel."

"What?" Megumi narrowed her eyes as Shinsei held a card up. "That's…"

"That's right, it's Fusion Blade Murasame! I equip it to…" He refused to call this fake Kenshin. "…that guy!"

A new katana appeared attached to Kenshin's belt. (2600/1600)

"Also, I play the equipment magic card Kaiser Sword, which I also equip to…that guy!" A golden broadsword appeared strapped to Kenshin's back. "This equipment magic card allows me to increase the equipped monster's attack points by 500! Also, when that monster battles with a monster that has attack points equal to its own, it wins!" (3100/1600)

"That won't be enough to defeat Hantenshi!" Megumi smiled slightly and tapped the side of her head. "You can slap as many equipment magic cards onto your Guardian as you want, there's no way to increase his attack by 2000 in total with just four cards off the top of your deck. I'm amazed that you got two equipment magic cards alone."

"I'm not done yet!" Shinsei slid a card from his hand into his disk. "I place one card face-down on the field and then I'll have to end my turn."

Kenshin glanced back at Shinsei, and then looked ahead at his opponents, eyes hardened for battle.

Megumi drew. "Hantenshi, blow that weakling away! Flame of the Underworld!" The angel lifted up a single ball of black fire and hurled it right at the swordsman. "It's the end for your Guardian, and he just got here too…how sad." The fireball slammed into Kenshin and exploded, filling the air with smoke.

"What's sad?" Shinsei smiled slightly as the smoke cleared to reveal Kenshin unharmed. "This guy shares an ability with one of my favorite Elemental Heroes, in that when he would be destroyed as a result of battle then I can send one equipment magic card equipped to him to the graveyard to negate the destruction and the battle damage. It's like having a permanent Bubble Shooter on him." Smirking as the Fusion Sword Murasame exploded into dust, he winked at the woman. "Try again."

"Easily." Megumi held up her drawn card and it flashed. "Purgatory's Sense of Time is a quickplay magic card that lets me start the current phase over again and also draw one card. So that means Hantenshi can attack again!" The angel unleashed another blast of fire that hurtled towards Kenshin.

Shinsei snapped up his hand and the fireball faded with the Kaiser Sword. "I activate this guy's effect again!"

Megumi held up the card that she had drawn with Purgatory's Sense of Time to reveal another Purgatory's Sense of Time. "I'll keep doing it until you're defeated!" She drew again while Hantenshi unleashed a fireball that hurtled towards Kenshin.

"Reverse card open!" Shinsei's set card flipped to reveal a steel shield. "Safeguard protects my monster from your attack!" The fireball slammed into a glowing metal shield that appeared in its path.

Megumi slid the last card in her hand into her disk. "I place one card face-down on the field and then I'll end my turn."

Shinsei drew. "I play the magic card Warrior Returning Alive!" Holding up Rageman, he slapped it onto the disk. "Return now, Rageman!" The giant hammer-wielding Elemental Hero appeared on the field. "Now, attack her monster!" (2000/0) "And as you must remember, Rageman gains half of the attacked monster's attack before damage calculation begins!" (3900/0) "That means the duel is mine!"

"Is that so? Reverse card open!" Megumi's face-down card flipped up and a blast of fire hurtled towards the Elemental Hero. "Divine Retaliation activates when you attack an angel on my field! The attacking monster is destroyed!"

"From my hand, go quickplay magic card!" Shinsei slammed a card into his disk. "Strength Transfer takes half the attack of one monster I have in play and gives it to another monster in play!" Energy flowed along Kenshin's robes as his power increased. (3750/1600)

Megumi laughed as the fireball consumed Rageman and destroyed it. "So that's it? You're completely out of options unless of course your face-down card is something worthwhile…is it?"

Shinsei looked down at the face-down card. It was the black-faced blank card…which meant it was absolutely useless. "We've lost…end turn."

"It's good to see you are accepting it! Now…" Megumi drew and then pointed at Kenshin. "Take this!" Hantenshi lifted up her hands and released two fireballs that hurtled towards the samurai.

Kenshin didn't flinch as death approached him. "Shinsei…it was nice to meet you, if just for a little while. If she beats you, then I'll wind up fading away forever…" He closed his eyes and sighed. "Good-bye…"

Shinsei grimaced and clenched his fist tightly. ("What am I doing? I can't just let this guy get destroyed…but…the face-down card is…") A tingle ran up his spine and he felt something…like a resonance in his soul. "I won't lose to the likes of you, lady! If this guy says he's Kenshin, then he's Kenshin…and that means…reverse card open!" The face-down card flipped up and energy exploded along Kenshin's body.

"That's a…" Megumi's eyes widened. "It's a technique card!"

Shinsei held up his right fist. "It's Ryou Tsui Sen! This quickplay magic card's special ability increases Kenshin's attack points by 700, and any monster he destroys as a result of battle during this turn has its effect negated!"

"Oh no…I already declared my attack!" Megumi gasped as Hantenshi's attack missed the samurai, who seemed to just disappear into thin air. "Where is he?"

Shinsei smirked and pointed up. "Above you."

Both Hantenshi and Megumi looked up to see Kenshin falling towards the half-angel with his sword out and held high above his head. "Hiten Mitsurugi Style, Ryou Tsui Sen!" (4450/1600) Then the sword slashed right through the half-angel. Kenshin landed on one knee in front of her, snapping the sword around and sheathing it.

"Partner…I…" Hantenshi shuddered and exploded into dust.

Megumi- 0

Shinsei- 1980

A silence held over the field, and then Shinsei smirked and rubbed his index finger under his nose. "It looks like I've won. Such a shame for you."

Megumi closed her eyes and sighed. "I suppose it can't be helped then…" She bowed to him. "I give you welcome, Vanguard Shinsei."

Both Kenshin and Shinsei blinked stupidly. "Huh?"

_To be continued…_


	6. Young Ambitions

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 6: Young Ambitions

_Shinsei held up his right fist. "It's Ryou Tsui Sen! This quickplay magic card's special ability increases Kenshin's attack points by 700, and any monster he destroys as a result of battle during this turn has its effect negated!"_

"_Oh no…I already declared my attack!" Megumi gasped as Hantenshi's attack missed the samurai, who seemed to just disappear into thin air. "Where is he?"_

_Shinsei smirked and pointed up. "Above you."_

_Both Hantenshi and Megumi looked up to see Kenshin falling towards the half-angel with his sword out and held high above his head. "Hiten Mitsurugi Style, Ryou Tsui Sen!" (4450/1600) Then the sword slashed right through the half-angel. Kenshin landed on one knee in front of her, snapping the sword around and sheathing it._

"_Partner…I…" Hantenshi shuddered and exploded into dust._

_Megumi- 0_

_Shinsei- 1980_

_A silence held over the field, and then Shinsei smirked and rubbed his index finger under his nose. "It looks like I've won. Such a shame for you."_

_Megumi closed her eyes and sighed. "I suppose it can't be helped then…" She bowed to him. "I give you welcome, Vanguard Shinsei."_

_Both Kenshin and Shinsei blinked stupidly. "Huh?"_

"You heard me." Megumi held a hand out to him. "Welcome to the Vanguards."

"What the heck is a Vanguard?" Shinsei looked over at Kenshin, who answered the question by shrugging stupidly. "You don't know? It seemed like you were pretty well educated on this subject before!"

"That was before…we wound up talking up to this lady." The red-haired samurai thumbed over at Megumi. "Can't we go and search for more Soul Templates now?"

"Soul Templates?" Shinsei looked over at Megumi. "On that note, what is this guy?"

Clearing her throat, Megumi started to speak. "A Vanguard is a special sect of duelists who have been entrusted with protecting this world from demons. And the Guardian is a special fragment of your soul created to help you in these duels. It gets stronger the more you train yourself and it, and Soul Template cards are blank cards that will respond only to a Vanguard. If you properly use it, then it will become a card that will work in combination with your Guardian to create amazing effects…but that is only if you know what you are doing." She held up a little wristband to him. "Use this. It is a special device that will indicate when demonic energy is nearby. Also, it will be useful to identify yourself to other Vanguards. Along with that…" She held out a small jewel-encrusted Deck Box. "This is called your Guardian deck. Store your activated Soul Template cards here. When your Guardian is summoned, the effect text of Familiar Summoning says to add your Guardian Deck to your normal dueling deck."

Shinsei nodded slowly, attaching the deck box to his belt and sliding the Ryu Tsui Sen card into it. Then he placed the black wristband on and watched as little glowing symbols appeared across its face. "Huh, what's with the weird markings?"

"Those are Rank markings. They tell other Vanguards what level you are, between one to eight in total." Megumi held a finger up right in front of his face. "On that note, there is one more thing you must know before you go. "Because this was called a Spar Duel, it is alright to lose your Guardian here. But if you lose a duel that your Guardian has been summoned to in real life, and it is a game either with a demon or another Vanguard, then you will forget all about Kenshin and he will disappear forever. Do…not…lose." And with that, she smiled and saluted him. "We shall meet again, until then stay alive." There was a flash of light and Shinsei found himself standing where he had been before.

-----------------------

Shinsei walked up to the exit to the airport and sighed loudly. "This is ridiculous…another test before we can leave?"

Sure enough, there was an entire series of booths set up blocking all the exits. And the sounds of duels going on told Shinsei that he was going to have to duel his way out of this place.

"It's a three on three duel against a computer program." A familiar voice spoke from right behind him.

Shinsei turned around and his eyes widened at who he saw. "Airos? It's you?"

The green-haired boy nodded and chuckled. "It's good to see you made it to the exit, Zeru. Now then, we'll need to find a third if we want to escape this place."

Shinsei started to nod, and then yelped as a rock the size of his fist hit him in the back of the head and floored him. ("What the hell?")

"Shinsei Zeru, I've finally found you after all this time!" A child's voice cried out through the din of the exits, and the sound of little footsteps could be heard.

Shinsei leapt to his feet just in time to avoid a punch aimed for his groin. "It's been a long time, Eric."

A little brown-haired boy holding another large rock turned on one heel and charged in to kick Shinsei in the shin. "After all this time, I'm ready to settle the score with you finally! My deck is ready to defeat you completely and utterly!" He held a duel disk on one of his arms to indicate this. "Now prepare to fight!"

Shinsei sighed helplessly. "You're a relentless little kid, but I'll humor you under one condition. If I win, you help me and green-haired bird weirdo over there get past the three on three duel challenge. Deal?"

"I don't care! Let's go!" Eric's disk activated and he drew his opening hand. "Go!"

Shinsei- 4000

Eric- 4000

Shinsei groaned and drew. "Fine, let's make this quick you little fool!" Looking at the drawn card, he added it to his hand and threw a card down. "Go Elemental Hero Aquaman (900/1100) in attack mode!" A fountain of water shot up into the air and then disappeared to reveal a blue-skinned man wearing fish scale green armor. "This monster, when summoned and I have no cards in play, allows me to draw two cards and then discard one from my hand!" Sliding two extra cards off of his deck, he added them to his hand and looked all of his cards over. "Now I discard Gun Showdown and set two cards face-down on the field. End turn!"

Eric drew and slapped a card onto his disk. "I summon Eucalyptus Mole (1200/1300) to the field!" A strange mole-like creature with Eucalyptus leaves on its back appeared on the field. "Attack his hero!" It scuttled across the field and slashed the warrior into pieces. "Take that!"

Shinsei- 3800

Eric- 4000

Airos shook his head sadly. "Bad move, kid."

Shinsei pointed at his two face-down cards. "First I activate my Sidekick Force trap card, which activates when a monster on my field is destroyed as a result of battle. Also, reveal Hero Signal! From my deck, one level four or lower Elemental Hero will be special summoned! Elemental Hero Bubbleman emerges!" (800/1200) The blue-armored superhero appeared on the field amongst a cloud of little blue bubbles. "When Bubbleman is summoned and I have no cards in play, then I can draw two cards!" Sliding two more cards off of his deck, Shinsei smiled as a silver-colored metal hawk appeared in play. "Also, my Sidekick Force trap card special summons my Scout Hawk!" (500/500)

Eric gritted his teeth and slid two cards into his disk. "I'll place two cards face-down! End turn!"

Airos shook his head again. "This kid is too riled up to think straight. Why would he attack and risk those traps just to cause you a measly 200 points of damage?"

Shinsei shrugged. "I met him about two months ago, and ever since I beat him in a duel he just keeps finding me and messing with me!" Then he drew.

_("Perhaps you've found yourself a rival?")_ Kenshin's voice echoed in Shinsei's head, but the boy didn't bother to respond to it.

"Let's go Eric!" Shinsei slid two more cards into his disk. "I place two cards face-down on the field and then I'll switch my Bubbleman and Scout Hawk into defense mode." Both monsters slid down into protective stances. "End turn."

Eric snapped the top card off of his deck and his face-down cards flipped up. "Reveal Chain of Destruction and Safari! These two traps will be your downfall, because the first, Chain of Destruction, lets me send cards on my field to the graveyard to destroy magic and trap cards on your field! Also, the effect of Safari lets me special summon one Beast monster from my deck to the field that is level five or lower!" A howl erupted from his field as a giant lion formed in play. "Wild Lion (1800/1400) in attack mode!" Safari and Eucalyptus Mole exploded into dust, along with Shinsei's two set cards.

Shinsei smiled slightly at that. "You've gotten a little better…"

"I've gotten a whole lot better!" Eric snapped up his hand and a giant blue koala appeared on his field. "When my Mole is sent to the graveyard I can special summon one monster with Koala in its title from my deck to the field! Big Koala!" (2700/2000) "Also, I summon my Des Wombat (1600/300) to the field!" A brown-furred little marsupial appeared in play. "Go now Wild Lion, crush his Bubbleman!" The giant beast tackled the superhero and blew it apart. "Also, Des Wombat attacks Scout Hawk!" Right behind the lion came the little creature, which tackled the metal hawk and shattered it.

Shinsei watched as a card slid out of his deck. "When Scout Hawk is destroyed as a result of battle I may add one Elemental Hero that is level four or lower from my deck to my hand." He held up Elemental Hero Burst Lady.

"It doesn't matter, take this!" The giant koala threw itself at Shinsei, dropping onto him like a human's hand onto a fly. Then the field shimmered as the creature reappeared on Eric's field. "I'll place two cards face-down and then my turn ends!"

Shinsei- 1100

Eric- 4000

Airos whistled in amazement. "Maybe this kid has some moves after all."

Shinsei stood up slowly and popped some kinks out of his neck. "Ouch, that still smarts even after all this time."

_("Now is not the time to be making the fact he is beating you seem like nothing, that it is not. Do you have a way to turn this duel around?")_

("Of course.") Shinsei rubbed an index finger under his nose. "Hey Eric, you'd better prepare yourself…because here I come!" He drew the top card of his deck and a smile crossed his face. "Oh yeah, here it comes! I play the magic card Joyous Rebirth!" There was a flash of light and Bubbleman reappeared on his field. "Now I draw two cards." Sliding two more cards off of his deck, the boy chuckled.

Eric just glowered at him like he was pure evil.

"I summon Elemental Hero Burst Lady (1200/800) in defense mode." Shinsei watched as a red-suited superhero woman appeared on the field in a crouching position next to Bubbleman. "Then I play the magic card Burst Return, which can only activate if Burst Lady is in play. All Elemental Heroes on the field, excluding Burst Lady, are returned to my hand." Bubbleman faded away and he picked the card up off of his disk and added it to his hand.

"You're just stalling for time now!" Eric pointed right at Shinsei. "Give it up already!"

"Screw you." Shinsei slid a card into his disk. "I place one card face-down on the field and end my turn."

Airos lifted his eyebrows at the face-down card. ("I wonder what he placed face-down…")

Eric drew and pointed at the superhero. "Go Des Wombat, open the way to my victory!" The little creature ran in and slashed its claws across Burst Lady's body, but nothing happened. "What?"

Airos gasped, while Shinsei smirked at the golden aura around her. "I activated my face-down card, which is a trap card called Invincible Hero. During this turn, one monster in play with Elemental Hero in its name cannot be destroyed."

Eric just stood in silence, and then kicked his feet a couple of times. "Fine, take your turn!"

("This kid is seriously in need of a hobby besides following me across the freaking planet trying to beat me.") Shinsei drew. "I play Elemental Hero Featherman (1000/1000) in defense mode, and then I'll place three cards from my hand face-down on the field." He knew he was taking a big risk, but at the moment it was either that or surrender. And honestly, while he did want Eric to eventually get that win he hounded for, now would not be the time to give him it. "End turn."

Eric drew and slapped a card onto his disk. "Another Des Wombat!" Another of the brown-furred creatures appeared on the field. "This is the end of you! Go double Des Wombat attack!" Both of the marsupials attacked, but one ran into a glowing barrier of blue light.

"Hero Barrier's special ability allows me to negate one attack when there is an Elemental Hero in play." Shinsei took a deep relieving breath. ("He's doing exactly what I planned he would.") "Also, reveal Emergency Provisions!" His face-up Hero Barrier and face-down card disappeared at the same time that his Burst Lady was blown apart by the Des Wombat. "By sending these two magic and trap cards to the graveyard, I can gain 2000 life points!"

Shinsei- 3100

Eric- 4000

Eric pointed at Featherman. "Die!" The Wild Lion roared and tackled the superhero, rending it to shreds with its claws. "Big Koala, direct attack!" The huge koala dropped onto Shinsei again, and then the field automatically returned to normal. "End turn."

Shinsei- 400

Eric- 4000

Shinsei stumbled slightly and shook his head out. "Jeez, what's with me today?" Then he drew. "Nothing at all apparently! Go Pot of Greed!" He drew two cards from his deck and added them to his hand. "Then I'll summon Elemental Hero Bubbleman again!" The superhero appeared in a flash of blue bubbles. "As before, I draw two cards!" Looking at the two new cards, his mouth quirked into a weird little smile. "How freaking sweet is that? I play my Dark Factory of Mass Production to add two normal monsters from my graveyard to my hand!" He held up Burst Lady and Featherman. "And now you're about to find yourself completely outclassed by my ultimate hero."

"What are you talking about?" Eric pointed right at him. "I can beat anything you can throw at me!"

"Not this one." Shinsei snapped up a card. "I discard my Fusion Magister (1200/1200) from my hand to activate its effect! Fusion!" Holding up three cards from his hand, he smirked at the confused look on the boy's face. "I fuse Bubbleman, Featherman, Burst Lady, and Clayman together to create the ultimate four-way fusion!" Lightning crashed down around the field. "Emerge now, Elixeler!" (2900/2900) A giant golden-suited superhero slowly lowered onto the field. "Fusion Majesty!" A bright explosion of light came from the hero's body as the Big Koala was blown into nothingness.

Shinsei- 400

Eric- 3800

"Reveal Beast Grass!" Eric's face-down card flipped up and he grabbed a card from his deck and placed it into his hand. "When a monster on my field is destroyed as a result of battle, I can add one beast monster from my deck to my hand! My choice is Des Kangaroo!"

Shinsei grimaced and slid a card into his disk. "I place one card face-down on the field and then I'll end my turn."

"Nice come-back, but it might be too late to recover from this Shinsei." Airos closed his eyes and smiled slightly. ("When you lose to this kid, I'll make sure you never hear the end of it.")

Eric smirked widely. "You're on death's door, and you treat your little 2900 fusion like he's the best in the world. Well now you've walked right into my trap!"

Shinsei blinked at that. "A trap?"

"That's right, a trap!" Eric drew. "Reveal face-down Soul Resurrection! One normal monster in my graveyard will be special summoned to the field! Big Koala!" The giant blue koala returned to play in a crouching position. "Now I'll show you a real fusion! Go Polymerization, fuse Des Kangaroo and my Big Koala together to summon my Master of Oz!" (4200/3800) A giant green-furred creature appeared on the field and pounded its boxing glove-covered hands together. "You can't win now that I'll wipe out your best hope for a victory! Go Master of Oz, Ultimate Punch!" The giant creature charged right at Elixeler like a missile.

_To be continued…_

To Seeker of the Soul: I'm glad you find it so freaking cool. We'll be seeing a lot more of Kenshin later.

To Azure Sands: Indeed.

To Demon Fan: But Aoshi isn't any good for it. I mean…he's not Kenshin. He's great an all, but…he's not Kenshin.

To John: Avoid hurting yourself now.

To Darksoulkai: Errrr…right, got it.

To Disciple of Bob: Screw you, it shall be Kenshin, that it shall. Anyway, it's in real life and therefore I doubt you could participate. No, I doubt there will be that much crossover from any other anime.


	7. Rage against your rival

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 7: Rage against your rival

_Eric smirked widely. "You're on death's door, and you treat your little 2900 fusion like he's the best in the world. Well now you've walked right into my trap!"_

_Shinsei blinked at that. "A trap?"_

"_That's right, a trap!" Eric drew. "Reveal face-down Soul Resurrection! One normal monster in my graveyard will be special summoned to the field! Big Koala!" The giant blue koala returned to play in a crouching position. "Now I'll show you a real fusion! Go Polymerization, fuse Des Kangaroo and my Big Koala together to summon my Master of Oz!" (4200/3800) A giant green-furred creature appeared on the field and pounded its boxing glove-covered hands together. "You can't win now that I'll wipe out your best hope for a victory! Go Master of Oz, Ultimate Punch!" The giant creature charged right at Elixeler like a missile._

Shinsei braced himself as the fist slammed into his fusion and shattered it into dust.

Eric threw back his head and laughed loudly. "I won! I finally beat you!" A loud whistle caught his attention and he looked over at Airos. "Huh?"

The green-haired boy pointed over at Shinsei's field. "Take a look."

Shinsei- 5400

Eric- 3800

Eric gasped in amazement as he saw Shinsei standing unharmed. "How did you not only survive, but also gain life points?"

"Trap card…" Shinsei's face-down card was now up. "Fusion Reflection Mirror's special ability is that when a fusion monster on my field is destroyed as a result of battle, I can negate the damage to me and the battle phase. Also, all cards used in the creation of that monster in the graveyard are added to my hand. For one final kick to the head, I gain 1000 life points for every returned card. It's one of the most powerful fusion traps in the world." He fanned out the five extra cards in his hand, making it seven he was holding. "Anything else?"

Eric trembled in anger, and then slammed a card into his disk. "I place one card face-down on the field! Just go!"

Shinsei drew. "I summon Elemental Hero Clayman (800/2000) to the field in defense mode." A brick-bodied superhero appeared on the field in a crouching position. "Also, I place on card face-down on the field and them my turn ends."

Eric snapped the top card off of his deck and pointed at Clayman. "Go Master of Oz, attack it!" The giant creature didn't budge. "What's the matter?"

"What's the matter is that my trap card is now in effect." Shinsei motioned at a stone shield that was in front of Clayman. "Hero Halo can only be activated and equipped to a warrior monster with 1500 or less attack points. As long as this card is equipped to this monster, it cannot be attacked by monsters with 1900 or more attack points. Because of Clayman's high defense score that means you can't attack at all."

Eric trembled even more and scuffed the ground a few times with his shoes. "You're acting like a scared little coward! End turn!"

Shinsei drew. ("With the current cards in my hand, I can make a lot of different possible fusions…but none of them would be able to get around what this kid has in play already.") Sliding a card into his disk, he prayed it would be enough for now. "I'll just place one card face-down on the field and then my turn will end.

Eric drew and scuffed his foot against the ground again, damaging the tile. "ARGH!"

Shinsei drew. ("For now I've got him frustrated and held at bay. However, I'm relying on a single trap card to protect me. And if there is one thing I know about traps, it's that they are easily defeated by card effects.") For now though, he had to continue to defend. "I place one card face-down on my field and then my turn ends."

Eric drew and his eyes widened slightly. "Heh…you're out of luck! I place one card face-down on the field and then my turn ends!"

Shinsei drew with a heavy heart. ("It's some kind of trap to defeat my Hero Halo.") Looking at the drawn card, he flipped it over to show it to Eric. "Graceful Charity allows me to draw three cards, but then I must discard two cards from my hand to the graveyard." Sliding the card into his graveyard slot, he pulled three cards off the top of his deck and added them to his hand. Then he took two cards from his hand and discarded them. "I'll get rid of Burst Lady and Spark Gun. Now then…" He smirked and held up Fusion Sage. "This magic card lets me search my deck for one Polymerization card." After a quick deck search, he was one Polymerization card richer.

Eric just stood there, eyes narrowed. ("What kind of human is this guy?")

("I have to make sure that by the end of the next turn he's afraid to attack me!") Shinsei snapped up Polymerization, Bubbleman, Sparkman and Featherman. "Come out now, Elemental Hero Tempester!" (2800/2800) A winged superhero appeared and lowered to the field. "Go Chaos Tempest!" Lifting up its blaster, the superhero blew the Wild Lion apart.

Shinsei- 5400

Eric- 2800

Shinsei slammed a card into his disk. "One card face-down, and that's it. Go."

Eric drew. "Say goodbye to your foolish little fusion! Master of Oz, attack now!"

Airos' eyes went wide. ("Wait…this…")

Shinsei closed his eyes slowly. "This is the end! Tempester's special ability lets me send one card on my field to the graveyard to negate his destruction!" A swirling vortex of air formed around Tempester's body. "Except…" The superhero started to glow bright gold. "Tempest Vortex's special ability activates! When this trap is sent to the graveyard you cannot damage my field during this turn, and if sent to the graveyard because of Tempester he can now attack you directly!"

Eric gasped as Tempester lowered in front of him, blaster aimed right at his face. "No!"

"Yes. Bang." Shinsei held up his hand, pretending it was a gun. Then he fired his 'gun' at the same time that Tempester did, energy washing over the little boy's body rapidly. "That's the end."

Shinsei- 5400

Eric- 0

Airos tapped his foot against the ground and sighed. ("And here I thought that kid might have actually been able to defeat the likes of Zeru. Oh well, if either of us could beat him it would be me anyway.")

Eric collapsed to his knees and looked at the ground in amazement. "You…you defeated me again?"

Shinsei nodded, and then gasped as he watched the boy assemble his deck together and run off. "Where are you going, we had a deal!" But when Eric didn't turn around, he rubbed the back of his head and sighed. "Damn, that's a let-down. It looks like you and I are going to be stuck here for a while."

Kenshin's prescense ran up his spine and managed not to jump as the samurai appeared next to him. _("There's a Vanguard nearby.")_

Shinsei lifted his eyebrows slightly and glanced around suspiciously. ("That lady told me to be careful concerning other of these Vanguard people, so I wonder where this mystery Vanguard is hiding. Are they stalking me? Or maybe they're just like me, just a person in this tournament and trying not to be anymore than that.")

Airos chuckled quietly. "Well have a look at this." He motioned over toward one of the set-up dueling arenas, at a young man who was begging to be let through. "I wonder if he's lost hope in finding a team. Maybe we should use him to our advantage…"

Shinsei was already on the move.

----------------

"Please, you have to let me through! My mother needs me!" The boy, who had a shock of white hair down his back that blended in with his pale skin and grey eyes tried to shove past the guard once more, only to get shoved to the ground. "Please! Not everyone in this city is a duelist in this tournament!"

"All citizens of the city were told about a month ago that they needed to leave. It's not our fault that your family was stupid." The man shoved the boy back again angrily. "Now quit bugging me, you little brat!"

"But my mother was too sick to be moved..." The boy tried to get around the man again, and this time was punched right in the jaw. The force of the hit dropped him like a sack of rocks to the ground.

The guard grunted and rubbed at his knuckles, which were bright red. ("Why did that feel like punching steel?") His eyes, hidden behind his sunglasses, went wide as he realized that some gold and black-haired punk had shoved the other kid out of the way and had taken the punch for him. "Who the hell are you?"

Shinsei brushed off his cheek and stood up slowly. "Allow me to introduce myself formally." Then he punched the man right in the chin, hearing the bones of the man's jaw crack. While the guard fell, he turned to look at the boy, who couldn't have been much older than he was. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, thanks to you." The boy stood up and offered a hand. "My name is Andrew Maschell."

Shinsei took the hand and shook it firmly. "Shinsei Zeru, and the green-haired guy behind me is Airos something or other."

Airos growled and piped in his name. "It's Airos Mitsunawa!"

Andrew looked between the two and gasped. "You're both duelists?" When they nodded he shook Shinsei by the shoulders. "Then please, help me get past this blockade! My mother is still at our apartment in the city, and she's deathly ill…" His british accent was difficult to translate to the ears of Shinsei, who had no experience with it before.

Airos nodded and spoke in perfect Japanese for Shinsei's sake. _"He wants our help to save his mother."_

Shinsei smiled and gave the boy a thumbs-up. "Can you play Duel Monsters at all?" When Andrew nodded timidly, the boy took a deck out of his pocket and offered it to him. "Use this."

"And what do you suggest we do about a Duel Disk for him?" Airos didn't like the fact that he was being drafted to do this good deed.

Shinsei smirked and pointed down at the unconscious guard, who had one of the devices strapped to his arm. "Bingo."

----------------------

As the three of them walked through the steel doors slowly, light flooded the makeshift dueling stage, illuminating the six different fields that were facing each other in a grid of two by three. "Welcome duelists, proceed to any of the spaces of your choosing. The duels will be three on three, with a total life point score of 24000 for your team and the computer team."

Shinsei gave Andrew, who looked completely nervous, another thumbs-up and then walked to the center field, activating his duel disk. Airos went over to his right and Andrew went over to his left. "We'll be competing against you, got it?"

"Understood." The computer echoed out. Each of the three fields became lit up by the energy of hologram generators. "Determining trio of dueling decks…" Then it announced, "Begin."

"Duel!" Airos and Shinsei both yelled out at once.

"Uh…duel…" Andrew said meekly.

Shinsei facefell and then stood up, yelling right at the other boy. "No! Put a little strength behind it!"

Facets- 24000

Shinsei/Andrew/Airos- 24000

"Beginning turn of Facet 1." The computer's three fields all had five giant holographic card backs appear along them, with the one having six cards in front of it being the Facet 1. "Summon Berserk Gorilla (2000/1000) in attack mode and end turn." A giant red-furred gorilla appeared on the field and roared at its opponent, who was Airos.

The green haired boy smiled slightly and drew. ("During the first turn of a multiplayer game no duelists may attack. Therefore, I have to plan my field accordingly.") "Computer, is there a zone bonus in play?"

"No, there is no zone bonus in play." The Computer then went silent, waiting for Airos' move.

"Then I don't have to worry." Airos placed a card face-down onto his disk, and then slid a single card into his disk as well. "I'll place one monster face-down on the field and one card face-down as well. My turn is done."

"Facet 2 beginning turn." The computer's second field went from five cards to six. "Activating magic card Nobleman of Crossout. One face-down monster in play will be removed from the game." A man in shiny armor appeared on the field and slashed through the face-down monster on Airos' field, revealing a blue bird which screeched and exploded into dust.

Airos frowned and slid his Stealth Bird (700/1700) into his shirt pocket. "Lucky shot, that's all."

"Facet 2 activates magic card." Another of the cards in the air flipped over. "Devil's Sanctuary special summons one Metal Devil Token (0/0) in attack mode to field." A little metal doll-like creature appeared on the field. "Set one card face-down and activate continuous magic card. Living Economics negates life point payments for creature effects. End turn."

Shinsei clapped his hands together. "Alright, let's do it! Draw!" Looking at the top card of his deck, he glanced over at Andrew and then snapped up a card from his hand. "Reinforcements of the Army lets me search my deck for a level four or lower warrior type monster and add it to my hand!" His deck spat out a card and grasped it, throwing it onto the field. "I summon Elemental Hero Clayman (800/2000) to the field in defense mode!" A squared superhero appeared on the field in a crouching position. "Also, I equip it with Clay Wrap." A lump of a strange translucent material appeared around Clayman's body. "End turn."

"Facet 3 begins turn." A sixth card appeared on the third field, and then five cards shimmered into existence. "Setting five cards face-down on field and ending turn."

Both Airos and Shinsei gasped at that, unsure what it meant. The computer had just threw all of its resources down onto the field, and if Clayman was destroyed than Clay Wrap would let Shinsei destroy a magic or trap card in play.

Andrew gulped and drew. "I…I summon Element Valkyrie (1500/1200) in attack mode." A red-haired woman holding a spear appeared in play. "Also, I set one card face-down and end my turn."

"Beginning turn." A card appeared amongst the five of Facet 1. "Summoning Spirit Ryu in attack mode." (1000/1000) A giant blue dragon appeared on the field and roared loudly. "Ordering attack of Berserk Gorilla against Airos' life points." The giant red-furred creature charged right at the boy.

"Reverse card open!" Airos snapped a card from his hand onto his disk. "Carrying Wind allows me to special summon a level four or lower wind attribute monster from my hand if I have no monsters in play! Come out now, Copper Osprey!" (1500/1400) A copper-colored little hawk appeared on the field and screeched. "Also, I activate the second effect of Carrying Wind! When I have no cards in play upon its activation, I can activate Rising Air Current from my deck!" All around them a strong wind started to blow. "The attack of all wind attribute monsters in play is increased by 500, and their defense is decreased by 400." (2000/1000)

The Berserk Gorilla stopped its charged and the computer spoke. "Changing attack target to Element Valkyrie."

Andrew gasped as a giant fist crashed into his monster and blew it apart.

Facets- 24000

Shinsei/Andrew/Airos- 23500

"Continuing attack with Spirit Ryu." The blue dragon roared and opened its jaws. "Special ability activates now. By discarding dragon type monster cards from hand during Spirit Ryu's attack, attack can be increased by 1000 per card." All five of the Facet's hand cards flipped over to show dragons, and then all of them vanished. (6000/1000) "Attacking Andrew directly." The dragon screeched and a tidal wave of energy hurtled towards the boy.

Andrew froze, his eyes wide in fear.

"Do something!" Shinsei yelled, but it fell on ears too afraid to hear him.

_To be continued…_

To John: Eric refuses to quit or admit his loss to Shinsei.

To Seeker of the Soul: No we do not, but here it is.

To Darksoulkai: He doesn't want to give up, what more can you say about him?

To G.O.T. Nick: I agree, it is a very circumstantial fusion. However, considering the fact it's a fusion, that's alright. No one says you have to fuse it.


	8. Three Ways to Defeat

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 8: Three ways to defeat

_Facets- 24000_

_Shinsei/Andrew/Airos- 23500_

"_Continuing attack with Spirit Ryu." The blue dragon roared and opened its jaws. "Special ability activates now. By discarding dragon type monster cards from hand during Spirit Ryu's attack, attack can be increased by 1000 per card." All five of the Facet's hand cards flipped over to show dragons, and then all of them vanished. (6000/1000) "Attacking Andrew directly." The dragon screeched and a tidal wave of energy hurtled towards the boy._

_Andrew froze, his eyes wide in fear._

"_Do something!" Shinsei yelled, but it fell on ears too afraid to hear him._

Andrew screamed as the huge blast slammed right into him, nearly hurling him into and through the wall behind them.

Facets- 24000

Shinsei/Andrew/Airos- 17500

"Are you alright?" Shinsei ran over and helped the boy stand up. "What's the matter with you? What was that face-down card?" Then he sighed. "I apologize. Don't worry about it." Helping the boy back over to his field, Shinsei glanced over at Airos. "It's your move."

The green-haired boy nodded solemnly and drew. "This thing isn't playing around, and neither am I!" Looking at the drawn card, he smirked and slid four cards into his disk. "I place four cards face-down on the field and then I'll end my turn." Now he had no cards in his hand, but from the look on his face it was fine.

"Beginning Facet 2's turn." A card appeared next to the remaining two cards this field had left. "During standby phase, payment to Metal Devil Token is negated because of Living Economics. Activate Coins from Heaven. All players draw until holding six cards in hand." A shower of golden coins fell onto the field as the other two facets drew six cards, and the second facet drew four.

Airos smirked as he also drew six cards. Shinsei just muttered unhappily as he drew two cards only, and Andrew slowly did the same.

Facet 2's face-down card flipped up. "Reveal quickplay magic card, Draw Till It's Gone. After naming one type of card, all players draw cards until they reach a card of that type. If they draw through their entire deck, then the effect is negated and they shuffle their hand into their deck. After that, those players draw six cards and gain 5000 life points. Calling magic card." A single card appeared and it flipped it over to reveal Spell Reproduction.

Both Facet's 1 and 3 beeped. "Deck out, proceeding to shuffle."

Shinsei and Airos both figured it out immediately. ("These three decks are pure focus decks. One is a Monster only deck, another a magic only deck and the last a trap only deck. Therefore, if we can destroy the trap deck first we should be able to win.")

Facets- 34000

Shinsei/Andrew/Airos- 17500

Airos went first, sliding three cards off of his deck until he found a magic card. Holding it up, he smirked. "Heavy Storm, perfect."

Shinsei drew five cards, and at the fifth held up Skyscraper. "Well that was a fun draw. I wonder what I'll do with all of these extra cards."

Andrew meekly drew two cards, and at the second held up a magic card and then added it to his hand. "So…what do we do now?"

Facet 3 beeped. "Reveal face-down trap card. Heavy Slump allows me to select a player who has eight or more cards in their hand. They shuffle their hand into their deck and then draw two cards." A little neon arrow appeared in the air and pointed at Shinsei.

Shinsei frowned and complied. ("Lousy stinking computer…") Looking at the two drawn cards, he sighed. ("How lovely…useless with my current field.")

Facet 3 had two more cards flip up. "Activate double Encore Performance trap cards. Copy the effect of Heavy Slump."

Airos growled and did the same as Shinsei had, as did Andrew.

"Continuing turn." Facet 2 flipped over another card. "Activate Dark Hole. All monsters in play will be destroyed." A dark hole appeared in the air and sucked up the monsters in play.

Shinsei slid his two field cards into his graveyard and pointed at one of Facet 3's field cards. "Clay Wrap, when sent to the graveyard, activates! I destroy that card!" The card he pointed at shattered into dust.

Facet 2 flipped over another card. "Activate Monster Reborn, reviving Shinsei's Clayman." The stone superhero appeared on its field in defense mode. "Activate equipment magic card Horn of Light. Defense increases by 800." (800/2800) "End turn." It now had two cards in its hand.

Shinsei drew. "You made a big mistake by clearing my field, since my favorite Elemental Hero is currently in my hand!" He threw a card onto his disk. "Elemental Hero Bubbleman, come out now!" (800/1200) The blue-armored superhero appeared on the field. "When he is summoned and I have no cards on my field, I may draw two cards." Sliding two cards off of his deck, he grinned at what he saw. Glancing over at Airos, he smiled when the green-haired boy returned his look. "Bubbleman, attack Clayman!" Right before the superhero leapt to attack, it and Clayman both disappeared.

Airos smiled and pointed at his now face-up trap card. "West Wind activates when a player declares an attack. All monsters in play are returned to their owner's hands."

Shinsei held up both Clayman and Bubbleman, adding them to his hand. "Thanks for the assist, Bird-boy. Fortunately for you, machine, I have to end my turn for now."

Facet 3 drew. "Reveal face-down card. Dust Tornado will destroy one card on Airos' field." A blast of wind shattered one of the remaining three cards.

Airos held up South Wind and chuckled. "This trap card would have negated it, but what sense would that have made." Inserting the trap into his graveyard, he smirked.

Facet 3 placed five more cards face-down on the field. "End turn."

Andrew drew slowly, his eyes closed and a prayer on his lips. ("If we lose, I won't be able to get to my mother…and she needs me!") His eyes snapped open. "It's my turn! Draw!" The air around him shuddered from the force of the draw, which brought gasps both from Shinsei and Airos. "I play Elemental Chaos! This card will first destroy all cards on the field!" A blast of energy slammed down on the field as all cards were destroyed.

Airos smiled as he looked at his hand. Now he had all four direction wind traps in his graveyard. Shinsei didn't care, because his field was empty. Andrew had only lost his face-down Astral Barrier, but the Facets had lost all of 3's set cards, and 2's Metal Devil Token and Living Economics.

Andrew slammed another card into his disk. "Activate Elemental Order! This card can only be activated right after Elemental Chaos! All cards in the opponent's hand are discarded!" An explosion of light rocked the field, and when it cleared the computer's side of the field was empty. "End turn."

Shinsei and Airos stood in silent awe. They'd never seen such amazing power…and Shinsei was more amazed that he never placed those two Elemental cards in that deck.

A card appeared over Facet 1's field. "Summon Theban Nightmare (1500/500) in attack mode." A blue-fire demon appeared on the field. "When there are no cards in hand or in magic and trap zone, increase attack by 1500." (3000/500) "Attack directly." The demon sprayed Andrew with fire, and he simply collapsed face-first to the ground in exhaustion.

Facets- 34000

Shinsei/Andrew/Airos- 14500

Airos drew. "I set two cards face-down and summon Mother Bird (0/0) in defense mode." A little songbird sitting in a nest appeared on his field. "End turn."

Facet 2 drew. "Activate Pot of Greed." Two cards appeared in place of the single one. "Activate Light Alone. If the only card in play is a light monster, at that time increase the attack of it by double." (6000/500) "Also activate Puppeteer. Control one monster of partner's." Theban Nightmare roared and sprayed Andrew's unmoving body with even more fire.

Facets- 34000

Shinsei/Andrew/Airos- 8500

Shinsei closed his eyes and envisioned what he had seen before in his head. ("Amazing power…and amazing drawing. That guy is not a normal person.") He then drew. "Andrew, you did enough…let me and Airos handle these guys from this point on. Let's do it Airos!"

"I'm all for it, so hurry up and move!" Airos glared at Shinsei, and then they both smiled slightly.

Shinsei looked at the drawn card and then slapped Bubbleman down. "Once again, I draw two cards!" Sliding two extra cards off of his disk, he lifted his eyes up to look at the Theban Nightmare angrily. "For attacking a guy when he's down…" He pointed at the machine. "Watch as I tear your monster down and bring your life points down with it!" As soon as he said this, a giant blue blast of energy exploded behind him and formed into the shape of a dragon, which roared and flew around the field angrily. "Hero Dragon allows me to discard one magic card that requires a specific Elemental Hero to add that Elemental Hero to my hand! I discard Radiance Glow to search my deck for Elemental Hero Radianceman!" After getting the card he needed, he slid two cards into his graveyard. "Activate Radiance Glow! When I discard two cards while it is in my graveyard I can add it to my hand and special summon Radianceman!" (2300/2500) An explosion of light slammed down on the field and a powerful red and white-clothed superhero lowered into play.

Airos blinked at the look on Shinsei's face. ("He looks like he is about to kill that thing…")

"Go Radiance Glow!" Shinsei's hand card flashed and the Theban Nightmare vanished. "When Radianceman is in play I can remove a monster on your field from play to gain its attack in life points!"

Facets- 34000

Shinsei/Andrew/Airos- 14500

Shinsei pointed at Bubbleman and it disappeared. "By sending one card on my field to the graveyard I can activate the graveyard effect of Hero Dragon and return one Elemental Hero specific magic card to my hand!" He held up Radiance Glow and added it to his hand. "Polymerization fuses Radianceman and Burst Lady together to create Elemental Hero Nova Radiator!" There was an explosion of fire as a pure red suited superhero lowered on the field. (2500/2300) "Field magic card, Skyscraper activates!" All around them, the field warped and changed into a city setting. "Activate the effect of Nova Radiator! When Skyscraper is in play I can discard one Radiance Glow from my hand to deal you half of your life points in damage! Go Nuclear End!" Then the world seemed to explode, everything turning red hot for a few seconds. When it cleared, the damage was done.

Facets- 17000

Shinsei/Andrew/Airos- 14500

"Go Nova Radiator, attack directly with Nova Blast!" The superhero charged up a ball of fire that it threw across the field. The ball dissipated into nothing because there was no target.

Facets- 14500

Shinsei/Andrew/Airos- 14500

Shinsei dropped to his knees and took a deep breath. "End turn."

"Begin turn." Facet 3 drew. "Place one card face-down and end turn."

Andrew didn't respond at all.

Airos frowned. "He passes."

Facet 1 drew. "Summon one monster in face-down defense mode. End turn."

Airos drew and smirked as his bird disappeared. "During my standby phase I can send my monster to the graveyard to special summon a single Winged Beast type monster from my hand to the field!" A giant bird appeared in play and screeched down at the field. "Roc from the Valley of Haze (2400/1000) in attack mode! Reveal face-down card!" A blast of air slammed into the face-down trap and monster cards on the computer's field and blew them apart. "By activating my Wind's Return trap card, I can activate any of the four directional wind traps. So I chose East Wind to destroy all face-down cards in play! Go Roc, direct attack!" A blast of wind came from the creature's wings.

Facets- 12100

Shinsei/Andrew/Airos- 14500

"Begin turn." Facet 2 drew. "End turn."

Shinsei smiled slowly and drew, trying to stay conscious. "Didn't draw that killing card? That's a damn shame…" He held up a card from his hand. "Activate Hero Strike! This card allows one Elemental Hero in play to attack twice, as long as it is my only monster! Also, I discard one Elemental Hero from my hand to power up Nova Radiator by the attack of the discarded Hero until the end of the turn!" (3300/2300) "Go Double Nova Blast!" Explosive flame shot from both of the superhero's hands.

Facets- 5500

Shinsei/Andrew/Airos- 14500

Facet 3 drew and placed a card face-down. "End turn."

Facet 1 drew and placed a monster face-down on the field."

Airos drew and smirked slightly. "End turn."

"Draw and activate Scapegoat." Facet 2 suddenly had four different colored Goat Tokens (0/0) on its field. "End turn."

Shinsei drew and looked over at Airos. "We've got it?"

Airos nodded. "Reveal Tempest Focal Point! This trap card lets me remove the four direction wind trap cards from my graveyard to destroy all cards on the enemy's field!" A powerful tornado tore through and blew the six (counting Tokens) cards in play into nothingness. "For every card destroyed, you take 300 points of damage!"

Facets- 3700

Shinsei/Andrew/Airos- 14500

Shinsei closed his eyes and bowed his head in silent thanks to Andrew. "I discard Edgeman for the final blow!" (4100/2300) "Go Final Nova Blast!" One final explosive fireball slammed into the other field and the whole room went dark.

Facets- 0

Shinsei/Andrew/Airos- 14500

"Congratulations on your win, duelists. You may all proceed into the city. There are taxis that will take you to one of our fine hotels, or you may simply ask to be taken to any other location, excluding the inner area of the city." The computer dinged nice and cheerfully.

Shinsei glared up at it weakly and then with Airos' help got Andrew to stand up. They were almost outside the other door when Shinsei froze up and slowly stepped back into the room. "Go ahead…please…"

Airos knew that tone, and in silent warning expected an explanation later.

Shinsei slowly turned and looked into the dark room quietly. "Well, who are you? Kenshin sensed you earlier, and now I'm curious as to what you want with me."

A chuckle was his response. "For a beginner you're pretty perceptive." A dark form stepped out of the shadows of the empty room. "I disabled the computer, so this duel won't be interrupted. Of course, you can avoid that possible risk by simply coming with me."

Shinsei shuffled his deck and was about to slam it home, but he something pulse from within his shirt pocket. Pulling it open, he blinked at the sight of a blank black-faced card. ("A Soul Template Card? How did…") His eyes widened as he realized there was only one possible time that could have happened. ("Andrew slipped it into my pocket when we helped him up? But…why?")

_("Now is not the time for questions, that it isn't.")_ Kenshin's phantom form appeared next to Shinsei. _("We must be careful against this opponent, he is also a Vanguard.")_

"Right?" Shinsei activated his duel disk again, and nearly collapsed. ("Did I burn myself out against that computer?")

"Fine then, I'll just wipe your Guardian out of existence and leave it at that!" The man stepped a little more out of the darkness, but he still couldn't be identified at all. "Ready?"

Shinsei slid the Soul Template Card into his Guardian Deck and nodded. "I'm ready!"

"Duel!"

Shinsei- 4000

Shadow- 4000

_To be continued…_

To Seeker of the Soul: I think Andrew proved himself, wouldn't you say?


	9. Battle against the Shadows

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 9: Battle against the Shadows

_Shinsei shuffled his deck and was about to slam it home, but he something pulse from within his shirt pocket. Pulling it open, he blinked at the sight of a blank black-faced card. ("A Soul Template Card? How did…") His eyes widened as he realized there was only one possible time that could have happened. ("Andrew slipped it into my pocket when we helped him up? But…why?")_

_("Now is not the time for questions, that it isn't.") Kenshin's phantom form appeared next to Shinsei. ("We must be careful against this opponent, he is also a Vanguard.")_

"_Right?" Shinsei activated his duel disk again, and nearly collapsed. ("Did I burn myself out against that computer?")_

"_Fine then, I'll just wipe your Guardian out of existence and leave it at that!" The man stepped a little more out of the darkness, but he still couldn't be identified at all. "Ready?"_

_Shinsei slid the Soul Template Card into his Guardian Deck and nodded. "I'm ready!"_

"_Duel!"_

_Shinsei- 4000_

_Shadow- 4000_

Shinsei removed the top card from his deck and placed a card from his hand onto his disk. "I summon Elemental Hero Soul Man (1100/200) to the field in defense mode." A white-robed man appeared on the field in a crouching position. "End turn."

"Prepare to be plunged into the horror of night!" Shadow drew. "I place one monster face-down on the field and then sacrifice it to this!" He held up the drawn card and sneered when Shinsei gasped. "Familiar Summon! Emerge now my servant!" The face-down monster exploded and all around them the shadows formed into a dark shadow-like humanoid.

"I am Kagero; Assassin of Night!" (1500/1500) The form pulled a knife out of its robes and leapt across the field, slashing through Soul Man and blowing it apart.

Shinsei grimaced. "You're so quick to throw out your Guardian? That's fine, I'll tear it apart right now!"

"Is that so?" Shadow opened his field magic card slot. "Good luck finding him! Field magic card, Curtain of Nightmares!" His entire field became plunged into darkness. "This card prevents you from seeing my field. As such, I don't have to announce my moves to you either. End turn."

Shinsei grunted and drew, his eyes widening at the sight of the drawn card. ("Familiar Summon, which means that I can summon Kenshin. However, I don't know what cards are on this guy's field now, and if he has a trap that would destroy Kenshin…")

_("Summon me please, Shinsei.")_ Kenshin's phantom form appeared next to the boy. _("Kagero is someone I have an agenda against.")_

("Agenda? How could you know someone I've never…")

_("That isn't important at the moment, that it is not.")_ Kenshin placed his hand on his sword's hilt.

Shinsei smiled weakly. "Alright, let's do it. Elemental Hero Bubbleman in attack mode!" (800/1200) His favorite blue superhero appeared on the field. "When I have no cards in play other than it, I can draw two cards." Adding two more cards to his hand, he held up a new one. "Right Justice will destroy Curtain of Nightmares!" Right as the magic card appeared on his field though, it exploded along with Bubbleman.

Shinsei- 3200

Shadow- 4000

("He must have had Judgment of Anubis face-down…") Shinsei did a rough calculation in his head and then snapped up a new card. "Go Flash Recall! I can add one Heat Heart, Emergency Call, Right Justice, or Over Soul from my graveyard to my hand!" Right Justice slid out of his graveyard and he added it to his hand. "Activate Hero Return! When I have no cards in play I can special summon one Elemental Hero! Return Bubbleman!" In a blast of bubbles the superhero reappeared in play. "I draw two and play Right Justice once more!" Then the card exploded along with Bubbleman again. ("Two…")

Shinsei- 2400

Shadow- 4000

Shinsei smiled at the dark cloud. "You activated Pot of Greed, and placed down two Judgment of Anubis trap cards. That means right now you have zero cards in your hand and only your field and Guardian cards in play." He snapped up a new card and a purple O appeared in the air above him. "Over Soul special summons Elemental Hero Soul Man! Return!" The white-robed man appeared on the field again. "Activate Familiar Summon!" Soul Man exploded and a pair of Japanese paper-frame doors appeared in the air.

The doors opened and Kenshin slowly stepped out onto the field, his eyes closed. "Kenshin; Wanderer of Twilight (1800/1600) has come. Kageru, I know you are here. Come out and fight."

"Fight?" A voice like smoke echoed out from the curtain. "I do not fight, fool. I kill."

"Regardless…" Kenshin glanced back at Shinsei. "Please…"

Shinsei nodded. "I'm not sure what your relationship to this guy is, but if you want to kick his ass who am I to stop you. Go!"

Kenshin drew his katana and leapt into the darkness. "Take this Kagero!" There was a loud howling noise and Kenshin disappeared.

Shadow laughed as Kenshin's cry of pain echoed out of the cloud, followed by an explosion of pixels that barely made it out of the cloud. "Fool, you walked right into my trap."

Shinsei- 1500

Shadow- 4000

"Your trap?" Shinsei gasped. "How do you have cards left?"

"You were so quick to try and guess what my strategy was. Yes, I did set two Judgment of Anubis trap cards face-down on the field, but your other guess was wrong. I didn't activate Pot of Greed. Actually, first I put three cards face-down on the field and flipped up one. It was a magic card called Treasure of Slashing Life. With it, I could draw until I was holding five cards in my hand. Then I placed another card face-down. After that I discarded two cards from my hand to activate both Judgment trap cards, and when you attacked with your weakling samurai I activated my last card."

"Your last card? What was it, and why did I take damage?" Shinsei was trying to ignore the fact that he was confused now. ("I might be screwed…")

"Nightmare Evisceration." Shadow laughed just a little louder. "While Curtain of Nightmares is in play I can activate it and destroy one monster that is attacking. Half of that monster's attack will be deducted from your life points."

Shinsei growled and held up another card. "Warrior Returning Alive places Kenshin back in my hand." He caught the samurai's card as it slid out of his graveyard, and then he placed three cards face-down on the field. "I set three cards face-down and end my turn."

"Draw!" Shadow indicated he was beginning his turn, but otherwise didn't say what he was playing. "Go Kagero!" A dark form exploded out of the curtain and flew towards Shinsei.

"Reveal A Hero Emerges!" Shinsei snapped up Kenshin's card. "When I am attacked, I can force you to select one card at random from my hand. If it is a monster card, then it is special summoned to the field!" A cut appeared in the sky and formed into a hole that Kenshin came through, landing between Shinsei and the approaching shadow. "Kenshin has more attack points than your monster, so just withdraw your attack."

"More attack points? Really?" Shadow laughed even louder as the murky form hardened to reveal a purple demon. (1900/1500) "I knew you would fall for it. I summoned Archfiend Soldier and ordered it to attack instead of Kagero. That means it is the end for your samurai once more!"

Kenshin didn't flinch as the claws of the Archfiend Soldier got within a few inches of his face, and then he disappeared right before it struck.

"Huh?" Shadow was clearly surprised, though he couldn't be seen. "Where'd he go?"

Shinsei smiled slightly. "I activated my face-down card…Ryu Tsui Sen! This card increases the attack power of Kenshin by 700 points until the end of the turn, and it also allows him to negate the effect of any monster that he destroys as a result of battle during this turn." Then he pointed up in the air. "He's up there, in case you were wondering."

Kenshin dropped down towards the purple demon with his sword up above his head. "Hiten Mitsurugi Style, Ryu Tsui Sen!" (2500/1600) Then he dropped through the monster and sheathed his sword. Letting out a howl of pain, the Archfiend Soldier exploded into dust.

Shinsei- 1500

Shadow- 3400

Shadow hissed in anger. "I'll still take you down right now! During my second main phase I activate Revival Sacrifice from my hand. This magic card activates during the turn that a monster on my field is destroyed as a result of battle. One monster in play will be destroyed, and a monster from my graveyard will be special summoned to the field!"

"Not this time!" Shinsei's last face-down card flipped up. "I activate Hero Undying! During the turn that a card with Hero in its title goes to the graveyard, I can activate this trap to prevent one warrior type monster in play from being destroyed!" A purple aura lit up around Kenshin. "As such, since you didn't destroy a monster as a result of battle, you can't revive a monster either, am I right?"

Shadow didn't reply to that question. "End turn."

Shinsei drew. ("We already used up Kenshin's technique card, but that doesn't mean we are out of tricks yet.") "I activate my Heart's Sword magic card. This card allows me to add one attack increasing equipment magic card from my deck to my hand." He removed a card from his deck and then pointed into the murky night. "Go Kenshin, attack Kagero!"

"With pleasure!" The samurai drew his sword and charged into the black abyss, only to come running out the other end so fast that his sword slashed right through Shinsei. It didn't actually injure the boy, but to his senses it felt like he had just been cleaved in two. "Shinsei!"

Shinsei- 600

Shadow- 3400

"Another useful trap card of the darkness…" Shadow chuckled calmly. "And a great one that I love to use in Vanguard duels when the opponent has their Guardian in play. It's called Misdirection Nightmare, and it's the perfect method to destroy you. When my opponent attacks me and I have Curtain of Nightmares in play, I can negate the attack and deal half of the attacking monster's attack to you in battle damage. Because of that, you just got slashed by your own partner. It hurts more than a normal attack, doesn't it?" Then he laughed crazily…until he heard Shinsei start to chuckle. "What's so funny?"

"Are you trying to turn me against Kenshin or something?" Shinsei stood up slowly and brushed himself off. "It won't work!"

Shinsei- 2800

Shadow- 3400

"What?" Shadow gasped as he noticed the life point counter. "How did you gain back so much life?"

Shinsei brushed himself off and smiled. "The card I searched for was called Medic's Blade. It is an equipment magic card that can only be equipped to a warrior type monster in play. That warrior's attack points are increased by 400. Also, when that warrior's attack would be used against me, I'd gain life instead of lose it. It can be activated from my hand right before such a situation occurs, as well." (2200/1600) "For now, I end my turn."

Shadow snarled. "I begin my turn!" His snarl died down. "Tell me, what rank of Vanguard are you?"

Shinsei narrowed his eyes slowly. "I guess I would be a rank one, why?"

"Just a rank one? That's a shame…" Shadow laughed sharply. "This is a level three technique that I am about to show you…the power of technique transmigration." Suddenly the darkness shroud pulsed with energy. "By fusing the power of Kagero with my own…I can activate a technique card from my deck once per turn! Shadow Slaying Knives!" The shadow assassin exploded out of the darkness cloud, its body surrounded by a wall of pitch-black daggers. "This card increases the power of Kagero by 1000 points, and he can attack once more during a battle phase if he destroys a monster as a result of battle with his first attack! Go!"

Kenshin threw up the Medic's Blade and braced himself as it jammed into the approaching daggers, shattering instantly.

Shinsei smirked. "When Kenshin would be destroyed as a result of battle, I can send one equipment magic card on him to the graveyard to negate such a thing and prevent the damage as well. Nice try."

"You think you're something special, but honestly you're just a scared little boy. Do you honestly think you can beat what you cannot see? End turn." Kagero bowed slightly to Kenshin and leapt back into the shroud before the samurai could attack.

Kenshin clenched his fist even tighter, the blood forced out of it and the knuckles turning white. "Damn him! I won't let the opportunity to get rid of this monster slip by me!"

"What's the deal Kenshin, how could you possibly know who that guy is?" Shinsei blinked as Kenshin glared back at him. "What's with that look?"

Kenshin closed his eyes. "I am not Kenshin Himura, at least I wasn't originally. Guardians are spirits that have existed for many years in many forms…but this one before us is different. It is a shapeless mass known as a Chaos Guardian, and when it chooses its user it doesn't adapt to the user, as I did with you, but it instead forces the user to change to its liking. As such…" His eyes closed and he seemed to be trembling in anger. "This beast had committed acts so wrong…so evil…"

"So very fun." Kagero spoke through the shadow. "I've killed people just to watch them die, I've tortured every possible kind of living thing…and none of those foolish other Vanguards could ever catch me because of my abilities at hiding. While I have my mighty Curtain of Nightmares, no one will ever be able to defeat me!"

Kenshin scoffed. "We'll…"

"You…killed…" Those words echoed in Shinsei's mind, and he started to shake all over. "You coward…I'll…" The air around him grew hazy. "I'll…"

Kenshin looked behind him at Shinsei, eyes wide. "Shinsei, what's the…"

"It's the end for you, Kagero! Draw!" Shinsei snapped the top card off of his deck and held it up without bothering to look at it. "First I activate Hero's Lucky Five! This magic card activates when I have no cards in hand and no cards in my magic or trap zone! I draw five cards, and all monsters in those five are discarded to the graveyard!" He slid five cards off of his deck. "Not a single monster, and now it's over for you, completely and utterly!"

"Is that so? I'd like to see you try and get to me now, little brat!" Shadow had gone silent, showing that apparently Kagero was running the show now.

Shinsei frowned. ("I need a way to blow away…") He closed his eyes and concentrated as he tried to think of a method to clear the magic and traps on the field with his current cards. But all he had in his hand were Bubble Shooter, Burst Return, Spell Reproduction, Hero Team-up, and Fusion Recovery. ("These cards have no combos…what can I do to…") "No, I have to win!" ("The things this creature has done…the pain it has caused…") "I cannot let your crimes go unpunished! No, my grandfather would never allow it! Kenshin, together now!" There was an explosion of light and a second symbol appeared on his wristband. "I sacrifice Fusion Recovery to add one Technique card from my deck to my hand! And my choice is…" A card slid out of his graveyard and he pulled it free with one hand. "…the card to destroy your darkness with one foul swoop!"

Kenshin drew his sword. "As you said…together now!"

"Right! I place one card face-down and activate the technique card Dou Ryu Sen!" Shinsei closed his eyes. "Let the darkness begone!"

Kenshin snapped his sword up, creating a powerful shockwave that washed across the room and nearly tore the walls down. "Hiten Mitsurugi Style, Dou Ryu Sen!" The darkness shuddered and was blown to pieces, along with Shadow's and Shinsei's set cards.

As the shockwave cleared, Kagero stood in silent amazement. "What did you do?"

"Dou Ryu Sen destroys all magic and trap cards in play…that isn't all though…" Shinsei wiped his nose with a thumb. "For every card destroyed, you take 800 points of damage!"

Shinsei- 2800

Shadow- 1000

Kagero stood there, his eyes wide. "You may strike me down, but we'll…"

Kenshin stomped his foot to get the shadow's attention. "Actually…"

Shinsei held up Spell Reproduction. "Let's end this! I discard two magic cards from my hand to take back one magic card in my graveyard!" As a card slid out of his graveyard, he snapped up it. "Go Kenshin, attack and end this!"

The samurai charged right at Kagero, sword sheathed and at his side once more. "I have waited forever for the chance to do this to you, monster!"

"I said you wouldn't…" Kagero gasped as Kenshin seemed to just disappear. "How…"

Shinsei held up Ryu Tsui Sen. "Guess what…this is my killing blow!"

Kenshin spiraled down through the air towards the shadow, his hand wrapped around his sword's sheath. "Final Strike!" An explosion of light came from his body.

"A Final Strike? No…no you can't…." Kagero couldn't run, his legs were locked in place.

"Hiten Mitsurugi Style…Final Ryu Tsui Sen!" (Instant Win against opponent's Guardian) Kenshin unsheathed his sword, and there was a moment of blinding light. When the light cleared, Kenshin stood with his back to Kagero. "Die." Sheathing his sword, he listened to the shadow's howls of pain as it dissolved into oblivion.

Shinsei- 2800

Shadow- 0/Guardian Destroyed; Vanguard Status Nullified

Shinsei's eyes slowly closed, and he collapsed face-first to the ground, unmoving.

Kenshin took a deep breath, and refused to let his body return to spirit form yet, despite its almost unarguable urge to do so. ("You burned all of your energy…without even realizing it. You changed the striking blow into a Final Strike, and thanks to you the likes of Kagero will not live as they are any longer. Now he is just energy within the world's life cycle…nothing more and nothing less.") Helping his Vanguard up, he started to move towards the exit where Airos and Andrew were. ("I'm proud of you, and proud to be your Guardian, Shinsei.")

_To be continued…_

To Seeker of the Soul: Yes, another Vanguard Duel it was…but this one shows what the consequences of losing can be.

To Darksoulkai: Errr…. (What can I respond by saying?)

To John: No, they would have lost without him.


	10. Something completely different

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 10: Something completely different

The sound of footsteps echoed down the dark alley as a young man of about twenty-three years of age walked across the dark concrete, the moon hanging his head like a reminder it was too late for people to be walking the streets. He had long brown hair that was tied up in a ponytail, and a pair of fierce ice-blue eyes. Pulling his coat around his body to ward off the coming chill of winter, he sped up his pace a little bit as he walked down the alley. When he reached about halfway down the alley, he turned to look back the way he had come. "You've been following me for the last ten blocks…is there something you wanted?"

A dark form stepped out into the soft moonlight. It was a dark-bearded man wearing a black coat. On his arm was a black duel disk, the material pushing away light as if it hated it. "You're very perceptive to notice me that quickly."

"Any particular reason you were following me?"

The bearded man rubbed at his chin. "Don't try and hide your true identity, Vanguard." He pulled back the wrist of his coat to reveal a black wristband with some dark red symbols etched in it.

The man tilted his head to the side a little bit, looking perpetually amused by a joke only he knew about. "Oh? Has even this Duel City become a place for the civil war between the three sects of the Vanguards?"

"Indeed it has, and I know about every member of my sect that is here. And you're not one of them…" The man's deep voice echoed down the alley, sounding like it belonged to a great warrior. "Bring out your deck, outsider."

"Outsider?" The man chuckled and brushed back some of his hair that was hanging over his ear. "Actually, my name just happens to be Kuruske, but then again I guess you don't really care." He reached into his overcoat and pulled out a portable duel disk that he strapped to his arms, its body folding out to reveal a full duel disk system. "Anyway, since you won't let me go without a fight I'll just have to humor you. However, it will be a Vanguard duel, so I hope you don't intend to remember what it's like to be a Vanguard after this duel ends!"

"You haven't even seen my deck yet and you're already talking trash like the game is yours…you will fall to the hands of the mighty Amun!"

Kuruske- 4000

Amun- 4000

Kuruske seemed to be moving as he drew, air blowing around him and moving his coat. "I begin, draw!" He glanced at the drawn card and nodded. "I place one card face-down on the field, and then I'll summon my Giant Rat (1400/1450) to the field in defense mode!" A giant grey rat appeared in play, its large paws sitting atop a skull. "End turn."

Amun's huge hand placed two fingers onto his deck. "Before I begin, just what sect are you part of? Are you part of the Humanity Cross…or maybe a member of the New Century…"

"Enough questions. Were you here to interrogate me or beat me?" Kuruske spoke evenly, though he still had that bemused look on his face.

"Defeat you!" Amun drew. "I summon my mighty Death Kaiser (1800/1500) to the field!" A black-armored demon with a long forearm blade strapped to each arm appeared on the field. "Your Giant Rat, if destroyed in battle, lets you special summon a monster from your deck with an attack of 1500 or less that is an earth attribute…"

"Thanks for the explanation, you saved me some trouble." Kuruske shrugged innocently. "You can just not attack then, and I could take my turn."

"What makes you say that?" Amun slowly took a card from his hand in between his index and middle finger, its back to Kuruske. "I just wanted to let you feel a moment of hope." He turned his hand so the card he was holding revealed itself. "Share the Pain forces both players to sacrifice a monster." Death Kaiser and Giant Rat both vanished in a flash of light. "And when my Death Kaiser is sacrificed, I can draw two cards."

Sliding two more cards off of his deck, he slid one of them into the graveyard and then held up one of the cards in his original hand. "I activate Return of Tribute. This card, by discarding one card from my hand, will return a monster that was sacrificed to the field until the end of the turn." A shadow formed on his field, and when the blackness faded his Death Kaiser was revealed. "Now you're in for it…direct attack with Blades of Darkness!" The demon howled and charged right at Kuruske, blades up to strike.

Kuruske crossed his arms across his chest and smiled calmly. "Is that so?" His face-down card flipped up and his Giant Rat reappeared on the field. "A beautiful beast to you, I say. Animal Kingdom's Superiority revives one monster from my graveyard with an animal's name in its title." Then the Death Kaiser's blades slashed right through the Giant Rat, blowing it apart.

Amun snarled and crossed his massive arms across his chest. "Well, what are you waiting for? Hurry and summon your monster."

"Patience is a virtue, wise men say." Kuruske removed a card from his deck and placed it onto a monster zone on his disk. "I special summon Delivery Catroid White (1000/1000) to the field in attack mode." There was a flash of light and a curious monster appeared on the field. It was about three feet tall, and was wearing an odd outfit that seemed kind of like armor, but not really. It had a box strapped to its back as well, and it was a…humanoid cat with brown fur?

Amun just stood there, jaw hanging open in amazement. "W…W…"

"Is something the matter?" Kuruske crossed his arms across his chest. "Or have never seen an Animalroid before?"

"You…you would mock me with such a bizarre monster?" Amun slammed his right foot into the earth and then slammed a card into his disk. "Go Mystic Wok!" Death Kaiser shimmered away, and he drew two more cards.

Kuruske- 4000

Amun- 5800

Kuruske whistled in amazement. "Five card draws in one turn…you must be desperate then?"

"Fool, you'd mock me for drawing extra cards." Amun slid two cards into his disk. "I place two cards face-down on my field and then activate the magic card Black Heart. One demon type monster in my graveyard will be special summoned to the field!" Death Kaiser reappeared once more in play. "End turn!"

Kuruske sighed and made a little exaggerated helpless motion with his hands. "You're a hopeless cause." Then he drew. And his short little mechanical cat did the strangest thing…it ran off the field and out of sight.

Amun just stood there, his right eye twitching. "What was that?"

Kuruske caught a card that was spat out of his deck. "During the standby phase of one of my turns where I have one my Delivery Catroids in play and you have a monster in play that's stronger than it, I may send it to the graveyard to add a special monster card from my deck to my hand." Shuffling his hand a little bit so Amun didn't know which one was the added card, he waved his hand out across the field. "Ready for my attack?"

"I'm prepared for anything you've got." Amun knew that his two face-down cards were more than powerful enough to stop anything this foolish duelist had.

"Then here it comes!" Kuruske opened his field magic card slot and snapped up his duel disk-wearing arm so that he could both show the card he was about to activate and activate it at the same time. "Field magic card, Secret Headquarters!" From behind him a giant building formed. It looked like some kind of old Edo era Japanese building, except that it had all different kinds of high tech gadgets all over it.

Amun gaped up at the building, slightly intimidated by such a strange structure. "What does it do?"

"It allows me to summon some assistance, but before such a powerful group of warriors would appear, there must be a threat worth summoning them for." He slammed a card into his disk. "Activate continuous magic card, Threat upon the City! This card only works if you have a monster in play. I can now special summon my ultimate fighting force from my hand to the field!" He threw a card down onto his disk and the building behind him shuddered and began to change. A large cannon-like structure pushed free of the building's body and aimed towards the Death Kaiser. "Launch!" There was an explosive blast of white smoke, and a white fireball crashed into Amun's field, sending up dust everywhere.

The giant man coughed and covered his face with a hand. "What is the meaning of this? I'll…" He was cut off by a powerful laughter that came from everywhere at once. "What's going on?"

"When danger threatens, the heroes are called in!" The voice yelled out, and the dust settled to reveal the same white Catroid from before. But something was different about it…its once non-existent armor was replaced by a powerful suit of much stronger armor, and it had a katana strapped to its belt, though the fact that it was still only three feet nothing didn't make it incredibly intimidating.

Kuruske smiled wistfully. "A beautiful evening, wouldn't you say, Super Catroid White?" (2300/1600)

"Indeed it is, though I don't think our shadow loving friend would agree with us on that." The little mechanical humanoid cat pointed at the Death Kaiser. "Not that it matters, because even in the pitch of darkness I'll be able to stop you…because good always triumphs over evil!"

Amun sneered coldly. "Then come and prove it."

"Super Catroid White, attack Death Kaiser with Saber Slash!" The robot cat leapt through the air towards the demon, sword drawn menacingly.

"Reveal Death Slash! When a demon type monster on my field is attacked, I can destroy the attacking monster!" A blast of energy flew from the trap card and struck the mechanical monster like a black wave…which was parted with a single swing of the cat's little blade. "What?"

"Did I forget to mention that when Super Catroid White is targeted by a trap card, that trap is negated." Kuruske sighed as the Death Kaiser was chopped down. "Silly me."

Kuruske- 4000

Amun- 5300

Kuruske took a card from his hand and gingerly slid it into his disk. "I'll place a card face-down on the field and then I'll end my turn."

Amun snarled and drew, then pointed at his other set card. "Reveal Call of the Haunted, which will revive my Death Kaiser." The black demon rose up out of the ground silently. "And now I'll tear your silly strategy apart! Familiar Summon!" He snapped up a card and his Death Kaiser exploded. "Emerge now, my partner!" A black shape formed out of thin air and lowered to the field. It was a dignified-looking man wearing a black tuxedo. "Alfred of the Black Family comes." (1700/1300)

Kuruske pursed his lips and rubbed at his chin. "My, what a strange fellow you've summoned. He looks to be rather harmless, so I'd say…"

"That's where you're very wrong…because when he is summoned he can destroy one monster in play and add that monster's attack to his attack." A blast of black smoke slammed into Super Catroid White and blew it apart. (4000/1300) Amun drew two extra cards and pointed at Kuruske. "Take this, Dark Smoke Doom!" A blast cloud of smoke rushed towards the young man rapidly.

"Reveal Trap Reflector." Kuruske's card flipped up. "I can take a trap card from your graveyard, and my choice is Call of the Haunted to revive my Super Catroid White!" There was a flash of light as his monster reformed on the field just in time to catch the blast of black smoke that shook its body. "At the time that my monster would be destroyed in battle, I can pay 1000 life points to negate the destruction." His entire body shuddered as he took a hefty chunk of damage.

Kuruske- 1600

Amun- 5300

Amun grimaced. "What a stubborn bastard." Sliding two cards into his disk, he pointed at Kuruske. "Alright, I place two cards face-down and end my turn. Now hurry up and summon your Guardian."

Kuruske drew the top card off of his deck. "You're not a very clever duelist, are you? You can't even see you're about to lose?"

"What?" Amun narrowed his eyes. "What are you babbling about?"

Kuruske sighed and held up a card. "Why bother explaining? I activate the magic card Heroic Stance. When I have only one monster on my field, I may increase that monster's attack points by 1500 until the end of the turn." (3800/1600)

"That isn't enough to beat my Guardian…" Amun sneered…

"So hopeless." Kuruske held up another card. "Alright, then I suppose this card is useless as well?"

Amun blinked at the shown card. "W…what is it?"

"It's called Chivalrous Spirit, and it can only be activated when I have a Super Catroid monster in play." Kuruske smirked slightly as energy flared along his monster's body, and the tiny little mechanical warrior took a warrior stance, blade held with both hands. "It's about to end for you. When my Super Catroid White's spirit of chivalry is at its full, he tends to get a bit…angry."

The short mechanical creature glared at Alfred with anger easily evident in its eyes. "You, who would so easily take a life…unforgivable!" A second sword appeared in his hand and he slammed the blades together, lightning flaring from both of them.

"His ultimate technique comes out…and that powers him up by double." Kuruske closed his eyes. "Sorry villain, but you're finished!" (7600/1600)

"Overkill…." Super Catroid White snapped up its sword and then brought them down, a huge yellow crescent exploding from the blades. "Cat's Eye Slash!"

"Overconfident fool, reveal face-down trap card!" Amun got ready to watch the monster explode, but instead his face-down card faded into nothing. "What?"

"When you try to stop the final blow of a hero, you pay. Chivalrous Spirit, during this turn, prevents you from doing anything trap or magic wise to stop the attack. And any attempt to do so simply removes the activated card from the game!" Kuruske snapped up the last card in his hand. "Limiter Removal doubles my monster's attack power by double!" (15200/1600)

The crescent slashed right through the black-suited. He gasped and bent over, eyes wide…and then he dissolved into nothing as an explosion of powerful white light erupted from underneath him.

"Alfred!" Amun screamed in horror, right before his vision was stolen by the white light that had destroyed his Guardian.

Kuruske- 1600

Amun- 0/Vanguard Status Nullified

Kuruske turned and walked away from the kneeling and unconscious Amun. "You've lost, and therefore you'll live the rest of your life free from the rest of this madness that all Vanguard's are forced into." Right as he stepped out onto the street, his eyes widened slightly as powerful pressure pushed against him for a moment. He blinked at a passing taxi cab in amazement. ("What was that powerful energy I sensed?") Turning, he ran after the vehicle as quickly as he could.

_To be continued…_

To Raine Vindicare: Thanks for the warm return, and sure.

To Darksoulkai: He isn't quite to the tournament yet.

To John: Maybe it did, and maybe it didn't.


	11. Two on one

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 12: Two on one; 

Airos sighed and dropped Shinsei onto the bed of their small hotel room unceremoniously. "You are ridiculous…first I find you unconscious, and then no matter what horrible things I do to you, you won't wake up."

Then he looked over at the still unconscious Andrew. "I can forgive you, because you're still a beginner."

--------------

Not too far away, two pairs of eyes watched the inside of the hotel room through one of its windows. "So the black-haired one is the new Vanguard that beat Shadow? And the other two are just normal guys, right?"

"Right. Therefore, all we have to do is beat that green-haired one and we can beat that new guy by just killing him, right?"

"Right."

-----------------

Airos sighed and glanced out the window, his eyes rather uninterested in what was happening in this boring town. ("No clubs open…no nothing…gods, it's so stupid to clear out a whole city just for a Duel Monsters tournament.")

Then a knock came at the door. "Excuse me, room service compliments of the tournament committee to all duelists staying at the hotels."

Airos sighed and walked over to the front door, opening it slowly. "Fine, hurry up please."

As soon as the door opened, he immediately knew he had been tricked. There was a young man about his age standing there wearing a leather coat and jeans. "Yo, green-hair dude. You'll have to get out of our way while we deal with your friend, okay?"

Airos sighed and reached out of sight, picking up his duel disk and putting it on. "Naw, he can't come out and play right now. I'm assuming you're something like that little kid from the airport, so you can entertain yourself by dueling me instead."

"You want to duel us in a Vanguard Duel then? That's foolish…" The young man glanced behind him to a black-haired man wearing a pair of black ray-ban sunglasses. "Wouldn't you agree, partner?"

"Indeed I would, partner." The man took off his glances and looked right into Airos' eyes. "Trust me, friend…this isn't what you really want. If you duel us using our rules, you'll be risking your life. Without a Guardian, every blow will be real. You'll really be killed if we land a killing…"

"I said I challenge you." Airos narrowed his eyes. "What part of that did you not understand?"

"Fine, whatever." The man pointed down over the balcony and out into the parking lot in front of the hotel. "That'll do for our playing field…be quick to arrive." Then as one he and the boy turned and walked off, chuckling to themselves.

Airos rolled his eyes and walked back inside to get his duel disk. "Troublesome times call for troublesome measures…but if what they said is true I can't hold back my powers at this time. If I do, I'll die."

-------------------------

A few minutes later, the three of them were standing in the empty parking lot, about twenty feet between Airos and the two, and around ten feet between the two.

"Before we begin, how about a little background on what exactly Shinsei did to the two of you?" Airos was rather curious now, after all, this was definitely an important thing to learn. He needed a good reason to beat the crap out of Shinsei later for forcing him to fight his battles.

"My name is Kyoshi…" The jacket-wearing boy activated his duel disk. "And our agenda is revenge for our partner, Shadow. After all, we were a team…up until your friend defeated him!" He snarled and dug his feet into the pavement.

"I am Ryumen, and our reasons against your friend don't really concern the likes of you. A lower class human being doesn't need to know the plans of those who protect them from themselves." Sunglasses activated his duel disk. "Let's go!"

"All that talking and we're back to square one…how sad. Duel!" Airos activated his duel disk, and glanced around at the land they were standing on. ("City Zone….only certain types of monsters get bonuses here…E-Heroes…and a few other random types. However, because it's also night, this is a City Night Zone. All demon and undead monsters gain a 400 attack point bonus, and all dark attribute monsters gain a 300 defense point bonus.") Looking down at his deck, he smiled slightly. ("It's fine…if I get the card I hope quickly, their bonus will disappear instantly.")

Kyoshi- 4000

Ryumen- 4000

Airos- 4000

Kyoshi snapped the top card off of his deck. "First, let's show you why we can't lose! Field magic card, Curtain of Nightmares!" All around his field, a huge cloud of darkness formed and stole all sight of his field. "As long as this field magic card is in play, you can't see what moves I make and I certainly don't have to announce them to you either! It's your move, partner."

Ryumen drew. "And guess what…" He opened his field magic card slot. "He's not the only one plunging you into darkness! Field magic card, Curtain of Nightmares!" His entire field was swallowed up in darkness. "End turn."

"How's that? How can you fight what you can't see at all?" Kyoshi laughed at the top of his lungs. "There's no possible way that you can possibly win this duel, fool! If you can't see us how can you expect to deal with not one, but two…"

Airos drew disinterestedly. "Activate Giant Trunade. All magic and trap cards in play return to their owner's hands." An explosion of wind tore across the field and both curtain of darkness disappeared. "What were you saying?"

Ryumen felt a single drop of sweat slide down the side of his head. "We're…we're not impressed. After all, we can just play them during our next turn!"

"Card Destruction forces all players to discard their hands and draw new ones." Airos casually slid his four cards into the graveyard and drew four new ones, and then he looked up at his opponent's fields. Both of his opponents had five cards in their hands now, and both had a single face-down monster in play. ("So uninteresting.") Holding up another card, he almost yawned while playing it. "Storm of Helios destroys all face-down monsters on your fields." A blast of burning fire washed over their fields and an explosion of heat backlashed into their faces. "Now then, I play Terraforming to search my deck for a field magic card." Discarding the magic card into his graveyard slot, he removed his deck from his disk and fanned it out, looking all of the cards over for the card of his choice.

"You insolent…" Ryumen glanced over at Kyoshi, who look very disturbed by their opponent's amazing casual act of brushing their strategies away. "Don't be afraid, if all else fails we'll just have to use our ultimate weapons and tear him apart."

"Keeping secrets are you?" Airos opened his field magic card slot. "Go Rising Air Current!" All of sudden they were thousands of feet in the air, winds blowing past their faces. "The Zone Bonus changes to Sky, so now all winged beast, thunder, and dragon type monsters now gain a thirty percent attack bonus. In addition, all wind attribute monsters gain 500 attack points and lose 400 defense points thanks to my field card's special power!"

Ryumen grimaced in anger at the fact that now they were playing by this boy's terms. ("Here, his monsters get the advantage. Only Dark, Light, or Wind monsters may attack.")

Airos slapped a card down onto his disk. "Air Hunter (2580/200) in attack mode!" A giant red-feathered hawk lowered onto the field slowly and screeched out, flapping its wings angrily. "Both of you need to understand the gravity of my dueling prowess…so I play Feather Shockwave! This card can only be activated when I have one monster in play and it is a winged beast. I may not summon during this turn, but my monster may attack a number of times equal to the number of targets I have! Namely…" He pointed at each of them, one after another. "Two targets, two strikes! Feather Shockwave!" And then his bird flapped its wings, spraying both of the Vanguard's with powerful feather darts. "End turn."

Kyoshi- 14200

Ryumen- 1420

Airos- 4000

Kyoshi looked over at Ryumen worriedly. "Ryumen…"

The man glared at the boy angrily. "Don't be afraid, damn it! Just draw and let's take this Ryoka down!"

Airos wasn't sure how to translate the word they used to refer to him. It was something meaning lower class of some kind, but there was no exact definition in his mind for it. However, he wasn't a native Japanese speaker, so he didn't expect to fully understand them.

Kyoshi hardened his resolve and drew. "I play the magic card Dark Underworld Hordes! By discarding twice the level of your monster in demon monsters from my hand, I can destroy your creature!" He slid two cards into his graveyard and black claws shot up out of a hole in the air, pulling the bird out of sight. "Hah! Now you're defenseless!"

"Really? Actually, from what I just saw you walked right into a nice punishment." Airos snapped his fingers and a loud screeching filled the air around them. "When Air Hunter is destroyed by one of your card effects and I have no cards in my hand, then I may special summon Tornado Hellion from my deck!" A giant blood-red eagle slowly lowered onto the field. (2000/1000) (2600/1000) (3100/600) "When this monster is summoned, all magic and trap cards in all player's hands are sent to the graveyard, and my opponents take 1000 life points of damage!" The bird screeched when he finished talking and flapped its wings once, a powerful wind blowing both of their hands down to one card, and also nearly throwing them to the ground.

Kyoshi- 4200

Ryumen- 420

Airos- 4000

Kyoshi shakily stood up, looking at Airos like he was the devil himself. "What are you?"

"Me?" Airos lifted his lips up a little bit and the air around him turned green and warped around his frame. "I'm better than you, apparently. Jeez, scaring me with that talk of… 'it'll really be death' and such. Stupid…"

Kyoshi placed his last hand card onto his disk. "End turn."

Ryumen drew. "I'll be sure to defeat you right now!" He snapped it up to show its face. "Pot of Greed lets me draw two cards!" After adding those two cards to his hand, he smirked and slid two cards into his disk. "First, I'll be setting two cards face-down on the field…and then I'll place a monster face-down on the field. It's your turn, bird boy."

Airos narrowed his eyes and drew. "Watch your tongue, if you'd please." Glancing at the drawn card, he pointed at Ryumen. "Go Tornado Hellion!" The giant bird screeched and prepared to release its destructive winds…

"Reverse card open!" Ryumen's face-down card flipped up to reveal a card with a picture of two men facing off with a picture of the Pot of Greed right between them. "Rival's Agreement allows both players to declare a single card name at the same time. If it's the same card name, then both players may add that card from their deck to their hand and then activate it if it is a magic or trap card."

Airos ran a hand through his hair. "What makes you think you and I will call the same card?"

"Who said it mattered if you called? You're not the other player…" Ryumen glanced over at Kyoshi, who looked incredibly relieved.

"Familiar Summon!" They both yelled out at once. There was an explosion of light and their face-down monster cards shattered instantly. "Emerge now, our partners!"

A howl shook the sky around them as a giant black form appeared on Ryumen's field. It slowly stood up to reveal a black-armored humanoid black wolf, holding a large claymore at its side. "Ragumon of the Black Tribe appears." (2100/1600)

A loud chattering noise shook the air next as a giant black rat appeared on Kyoshi's field. "Nezumura of the Black Nest appears!" (100/100)

Airos frowned slightly at these Duel Monsters. Something about them didn't seem quite right. ("What's the deal? Why are they making me feel uneasy…it's still my turn, and one good hit will put these two out of their misery.") "Go Hellion, attack the wolf one!" He pointed at Ragumon. "Tornado Scream!"

"Reverse card open!" Ryumen threw back his head and laughed in triumph. "Technique Activation allows me to use one card from my Guardian Deck that is a Technique…namely my Black Claw Killer will do!" A card appeared in his hand and he held it up to reveal a picture of Ragumon with its claws glowing with black fire. "When this quickplay magic card is activated, Ragumon becomes infused with a powerful dark flame that allows him to increase his attack points by 1000 until the end of the turn." (3100/1600)

"So our monsters will destroy each other?" Airos felt a little better knowing he was still taking that big black beast out of the game.

"Let's find out! Go now and attack his monster Ragumon!" Ryumen pointed at the Tornado Hellion, which opened its jaws and released an angry tornado of fire that hurtled towards the wolf creature.

Ragumon bared his claws and dropped his sword, eyes locked at the approaching whirlwind with the intensity of a hunter closing in on its prey. "Overkill…Black Claw Killer!" Then he snapped his claws at the tornado, a flurry of black sickle-shaped beams tearing the windstorm apart and then slashing through the Tornado Hellion. (3300/1600)

"What?" Airos threw up his arms just in time as a sickle of energy flew in to tear him apart, only to get dispelled as a barrier of wind sprang to life around his body. "How? How did your monster get stronger?"

"Its a little ability Ragumon has called Opposition Against Numbers. For every monster the opponent has in play upon the start of a battle, Ragumon gains 200 attack points during the damage step." Ryumen sneered at the angered look on Airos face. "What's the matter, Ryoka? Can you not understand such a simple effect?"

Kyoshi- 4200

Ryumen- 420

Airos- 3800

Airos glanced at Kyoshi, who was snickering along with his partner. ("These guys and these new monsters are different than the others…but how?") Glancing at his drawn card, he snarled and slid it into his disk. "I place a single card face-down and then I end my turn."

Kyoshi drew, and with a calm sneer on his face held the card up to reveal Monster Gate. "I offer this card as a tribute to activate my Vanguard power! I may add one Technique card to my hand!" The card changed into a picture of a group of face-down cards filled with little bite marks. "Activate Rat's Chewdown! This card will allow Nezumura to not only consume all of your face-down cards in play, but also for each one destroyed you lose the top three cards of your deck!"

Nezumura chattered and exploded into a horde of much smaller black rats. "Overkill…Rat's Chewdown!" The horde charged towards the face-down card like a wave…

"Reveal Disturbance Storm!" Airos' face-down card flipped up and a powerful tornado exploded up around him. "This trap card can only be activated when I have a Rising Air Current in play. Until my draw phase, I cannot be attacked!" The horde of rats returned to Kyoshi's field and reformed into Nezumura.

Kyoshi snickered and held up a finger. "Nice save…but during my end phase Nezumura forces the top four cards off of your deck." His Guardian started to glow dark black, and the top four cards of Airos' deck slid off the top and extended themselves for him to remove.

As the green-haired did this, he felt like he was suddenly in a very dangerous position. ("I'm walking the tightrope here…and if I'm not careful, I'll take the drop to my death.")

From his hiding place behind a nearby wall, Kuruske couldn't help but agree as he watched. ("A pair of Vanguards against a Ryoka? What are these times coming to?")

_To be continued…_

Author's Notes: Hey, I know there are more of you out there reading this story than just these three. If you want more chapters at a faster rate, then send in some reviews so I'm inspired to write more. Those of you who follow my older works should know that already, and for those of you new to my stories you've been informed. A review is food for my imagination, because it reminds me that there are people out there reading this stuff.

To Demon Fan: Sort of, but not off Samurai Pizza Cats. Actually off of Kyatto Ninden Teyandee (spelling it off memory) which is the Japanese version of the show. They're light years in difference. On that note, please use periods next time for your thoughts.

To John: No, not at all. Alfred is a name I came up off the top of my head because I couldn't think of a good name for a guy in a freaking black tuxedo.

To Seeker of the Soul: Hey, Kuruske's a quirky guy like that.


	12. A whole party is going on over here

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 12: A whole party's going on over here

_As the green-haired did this, he felt like he was suddenly in a very dangerous position. ("I'm walking the tightrope here…and if I'm not careful, I'll take the drop to my death.")_

_From his hiding place behind a nearby wall, Kuruske couldn't help but agree as he watched. ("A pair of Vanguards against a Ryoka? What are these times coming to?")_

Kyoshi sneered and held up another finger, making the victory sign. "I think you're in quite a bit over your head, wouldn't you say Ryoka-san?"

Airos narrowed his eyes and looked over at Ryumen. "It's your turn, is it not?"

"Indeed it is." Ryumen drew. "At the current moment, we can't attack you thanks to your Disturbance Storm trap card, which prevents us from attacking until your next draw phase has come. So for now I'll simply place this drawn card face-down on my field and then my turn will end."

Nezemura chattered loudly, clacking its teeth together. "Hurry and summon your next monster, Ryoka. I will enjoy demolishing it…"

"Heh, you're not one to talk garbage-breath, considering you have only a hundred attack points." Ragumon held up his claymore to point its edge at Airos. "I, however, am more than well equipped to defeat any monster this foolish human can hope to draw. And if he draws another defensive trap that will just give my partner more time to prepare for when you run out of such paltry methods of protection."

"So annoying." Airos drew, sliding the card into his duel disk. "I set one card face-down on the field and then I end my turn."

"You think it's wise to set cards face-down when facing Nezemura? Fool!" Kyoshi drew the top card of his deck and it disappeared. "I offer a card as a sacrifice to activate another of my partner's techniques!" A new card appeared in his hand and he held it up. "Go Rat's Nest!"

Nezemura chattered against and shuddered. "Overkill…" There was an explosion of green gas, and when it cleared there were five of it on the field instead of one. "…Rat's Nest!" (5x100/100) "Now you're troubles are increased by five!"

Airos rolled his eyes. "Five nothings still equal nothing, right?"

"Go Nezemura army, attack directly!" The five rats launched right at Airos, and were blown away by another barrier of his air. "When Nezemura or one of his Copy Tokens damages your life points, you must discard the top two cards of your deck. That means you lose the top ten cards of your deck!" Kyoshi pointed right at Airos, snickering as the boy's duel disk whined in protest, spitting out five sets of two cards one after another.

Airos inserted all of the cards into his graveyard and bit his lower lip. ("Despite how low that damage was to me, it still cost me a lot of my deck.")

Kyoshi- 420

Ryumen- 420

Airos- 3300

Kyoshi glanced over at Ryumen. "You're up."

"And he's down." Ryumen drew the top card off of his deck and pointed right at Airos. "Go Ragumon, attack his life points directly!" His Guardian let out a howl of anger as it launched right at Airos like a missile, slamming its sword down onto the boy's invisible air barrier.

Kyoshi- 420

Ryumen- 420

Airos- 1200

Ryumen scoffed loudly and inserted his drawn card into his disk. "It's sad that you still think you can win against us now that our Guardians are out. Don't you get it yet…we're beyond your little Ryoka…"

Airos drew. "I first play Pot of Greed." Sliding the next two cards from his deck, he calmly held one card up. "Then from my hand I play Summoning Airs. For every magic and trap card in my graveyard, my life points will be increased by 100 points. Also, if the number of gained life points equals 2000 or more, I may special summon a monster card from my hand to the field." A green air fluttered around him and he threw a card onto his disk. "Come from the sky, Kaiser Glider!" (2400/2000) A large sleek golden dragon seemed to lower down from the sky, roaring its anger to the world. "Go Golden Burst!" He pointed right at Ragumon. "Destroy that annoying dog!"

"Who are you calling a dog, annoying Ryoka!" Ryumen pointed at his set card. "Go Redirection Gravity. This trap card will force your attack to be redirected to one target in play on the field, and that target is forced into defense mode if it isn't in that mode already."

The dragon roared and released a golden ball of fire that slammed into one of the Nezemura tokens and blew it apart. Airos scoffed in frustration before motioning at Kyoshi to take his turn.

The boy did so in earnest, ready to take revenge for the loss of one of his Guardian's copies. "Perfect, this card will be a nice surprise in case you get arrogant and try to attack. I'll place it face-down and now Nezemura and its tokens will attack your life points directly!" The four remaining rats ran right past the Kaiser Glider and slammed into Airos' wall harmlessly. "Heh, your deck will soon be gone."

Kyoshi- 420

Ryumen- 420

Airos- 2800

Airos removed the top eight cards of his deck and slid them into his graveyard slot. ("At this rate I'll lose in a couple of turns.")

Kyoshi motioned over to Ryumen. "Let's end it in the next couple of turns, okay? I'd rather not deal with that new Vanguard…I mean…he made level two in his first real duel."

"Right." Ryumen drew the top card of his deck. "I offer a monster card from my hand to activate a Vanguard ability of a level four. By discarding this card from my hand, I can add one equipment magic card from my Guardian Deck to my hand!" A card appeared in his hand and he snapped it up. "Go Mega Crusher!" A giant black claymore appeared in the place of Ragumon's normal weapon. "This powerful weapon raises my partner's attack points by 200, and any monster he destroys in battle has its effect negated. Go Ragumon, crush his last hopes of winning. And before you argue, Ryoka, remember that for every monster you have on the field, my monster powers up by 200." (2500/1600)

Ragumon came flying in, its new weapon held back to slash through the golden dragon easily. "It's the absolute end for you, fool! Once your pretty little golden dragon is gone, you'll be next!" Then the weapon came flying in towards the Kaiser Glider's body, only to go flying right into Airos' barrier instead. "Huh?"

"Reveal face-down card." Airos pointed at his now face-up trap card. "Aero Reversal activates when I have Rising Air Current in play. It negates your attack by redirecting it to me, but since I have a monster in play the second effect of Aero Reversal says that during this turn you cannot damage my life points."

Ryumen snarled and stomped his foot angrily. "What an annoyance…end turn." As Ragumon returned to his field, he felt his confidence rise once more. "You'll be crushed soon, you know that right?"

Airos closed his eyes and drew the top card of his deck. After looking at it he sighed. "Good, I was growing really tired of listening to your voices running. I activate Surpassing the Barrier on my Kaiser Glider!" His golden dragon roared and exploded into dust. "By destroying my Kaiser Glider, I can call upon my ultimate weapon!" A giant golden meteor could be seen in the distance some ways behind him. "A monster beyond human comprehension in its speed." Then they all disappeared within a burning meteor of golden light.

Kuruske braced himself against the nearly earth-shattering strength of the passing meteor, and when the dust cloud cleared he could only stare in amazement at what he saw. The field was empty, with the exclusion of a pair of glowing seals in the air that quickly faded to dust.

Kyoshi- 0/Vanguard Status Nullified

Ryumen- 0/Vanguard Status Nullified

Airos- 2800

Airos tugged on his shirt and brushed back his hair with a hand. "That's the end."

Both Ryumen and Kyoshi were completely out cold, blood coming from their ears.

("What…what an amazing power. What was that?") Kuruske was about to get up and start applauding, but from out of nowhere someone beat him to it. ("Huh?")

"That's a truly impressive feat." A voice spoke out, cultured and thick in an English accent. "Nothing human could have taken what you just summoned easily, so for that I commend you, strange Ryoka."

Airos narrowed his eyes. "I doubt you understand what I did…"

"Velocity Kaiser Glider (2600/2100) is the ultimate king of the skies. When it is summoned it immediately attacks the opponent directly through all negating effects, and the timing window for activating magic and trap cards against it is impossible to calculate…essentially, it cannot have a trap activated against it because nothing human or even superhuman moves fast enough to respond to such an attack. As such, you attacked their life points directly so quickly they didn't even realize they had lost."

The green-haired boy frowned. "It seems like our mystery guest has done his homework…but now I wish he would reveal himself already."

"Of course I shall introduce myself…" A tall form slowly walked into the moonlight of the parking lot, a strange air of energy coming from him. He had long black hair, and a pair of cold purple eyes. The clothing he wore was so ornate and body-encompassing Airos was amazed the man could move at all. "My name is Victoran Burenst, monarch of the Humanity Cross."

Airos felt like he was missing something deep concerning this guy, but he didn't really care. "I am Airos, which is all you should need to know. Now then, what is your business?"

Victoran looked down at his gloved hand, smiling calmly. "I must speak with your friend Shinsei."

"Friend? I think you're GAH!" Airos nearly launched himself into the air as Shinsei seemed to just appear right in front of him. "When did you wake up?"

"About two seconds before your little duel with those two guys began…thanks for giving me time to get something to eat. I felt so tired…" Readjusting his clothes, Shinsei smirked at Victoran. "Yeah, can I felt you with something? Or are you just here for the autograph of the soon-to-be king of Duel Monsters?"

Victoran closed his eyes and spoke calmly, unperturbed by the insolence of his target. "I have come to offer you a position at the lower levels of our prestigious sect. Considering your bloodline, you should be obviously honored that I'd even come to personally see you."

Shinsei felt his very body, from head to toe, bristle as this man talked. ("Something about him literally rubs me the wrong way…he's acting under a motive.") "And if I were to refuse this proposal, which I obviously freaking am?"

Victoran lifted up one gold armor-plated arm, which had a ridiculously fancy duel disk attached to it. "Then I must execute you."

Shinsei snickered. "Yeah, come and try…"

Victoran frowned deeply. "You don't know what you ask for, boy…"

"Sure I do. Show me your power in its fullest and maybe I'll consider your offer." Shinsei sneered and then stuck out his tongue. "Or are you afraid, gold-chan?"

Victoran's expression didn't change, but his duel disk did activate. "Execution it is then. So be it, come and take what you requested."

Shinsei snapped up his duel disk. "Good, I needed a warm up right after dinner!" His disk activated and he drew his opening hand. "Hey Airos, go check on Andrew and make sure he's okay."

"I'm not your errand boy, jerk." The green-haired boy walked over and rested his back against a nearby wall. "I'd rather watch this duel instead."

"Enough talk, your death waits." Victoran drew his opening hand. "Have you made your last will, boy?"

"Duel!" Shinsei smirked and slid the top five cards off of his deck.

Shinsei- 4000

Victoran- 4000

Shinsei removed the top card of his deck and smiled calmly. "I hope you're not just how you look on the outside…all glitter and no substance." Snapping up a card, he hoped he was right. "Go Polymerization! This magic card allows me to fuse monsters in my hand and field together to special summon a fusion monster from my fusion deck!" Holding up two more cards, he grinned as a pair of humanoids appeared on his field. One was a block-like humanoid made of clay, and the other was a superhero holding a large side at its side. "Elemental Heroes Clayman and Shieldman fuse together to create this!" Both monsters were sucked into a powerful vortex, and when it cleared there was an version of Clayman on the field holding a giant shield in front of it. "Elemental Hero Stone Shielder (0/2600) in defense mode! I place one card face-down on the field and then I end my turn."

Victoran sighed deeply and drew. "Are you prepared, foolish one?" As he said this, his entire body was nearly swallowed up in a powerful explosive blast of blue energy, which quickly surrounded him like a flame. "Your execution will be grand, I promise you that much for getting rid some of the Chaos Flame riff-raff for us."

Shinsei felt his left arm shudder and pop out of its socket, while the rest of him was nearly thrown across the parking lot. Screaming in pain, he dropped to one knee and the two cards he had in his hand dropped to the ground while he forcefully popped his arm back into place. "Shut up, you loud-mouthed royal pain in the ass!" Snatching up his two lost cards, he leapt to his feet and pointed right at Victoran. "Well, are you making your move or what?"

"Your Vanguard energy…" Frowning, the black-haired man reined in his powers a little bit, lest he shatter his opponent accidentally. "How did you beat another Vanguard? Your Vanguard energy is almost zero…and if this is after you rested, then there should be no excuse at all!"

"What are you babbling about? Let's just duel!" Shinsei tried to ignore the fact that his legs were trembling now. ("This guy is the real deal…a powerful opponent…a true challenge!")

Victoran narrowed his eyes and looked down at his deck. "It's such a shame I am using my Guardian Deck against you…but I thought you'd be better than this. Oh well, it is an execution after all."

"Stop calling it that! This is a duel!" Shinsei snarled despite his fear and pointed right at the man. "Now hurry and play your card!"

"Very well." Victoran held up one hand and a flurry of rose petals came out of nowhere, swirling around his field like they were trapped in a tornado. "May the heart of chivalry come here…bring yourself forth!"

A single cut appeared in the sky, and from within it emerged a silver-armored form holding a heavy bastard sword with one hand. It was a blond-haired and blue-eyed man…looking like the Prince Charming from almost every little girl's fairy tale. "Radiance of the Silver Heroes appears! Run in fear, villains!" (3400/2500)

Shinsei's eyes nearly exploded out of his head. "3400 attack points? And how did you summon your Guardian without using…"

"It is a power a level six Vanguard possesses…by discarding one Familiar Summon card from my hand or deck, I can special summon my Guardian at any time." Victoran held up a card. "Activate equipment magic card, Sword of Truth!" A glowing white sword replaced Radiance's normal sword. "The attack of Radiance increases by 2500 points and once per turn I can remove one magic or trap card from the game." Radiance aimed his blade at the face-down card on Shinsei's field, which dissolved into dust. (5900/2500) "Radiance, banish his monster from this realm!"

"Prepare yourself for combat!" The silver knight launched in and slashed right through the armored superhero, its body dissolving into little particles of air. "With my sword equipped, your monster is removed from the game as well."

Shinsei just stood there, even his eyes trembling in complete and utter fear. ("No…this isn't right…how can…")

Airos felt like passing out from the force of that aura, even in it's reigned in state. ("What in the name of hell is this guy?")

From his spot behind the wall, Kuruske pounded his fist into the ground a couple of times. ("This is far wrong! Damn it, why is he here? Wouldn't one of the top six duelists of the Humanity Cross have better things to do than go demolishing new Vanguards?")

"Well?" Victoran pointed at Shinsei. "The turn has gone to you, executionee."

Shinsei shakily drew, and slid the card into his disk. "Go Pot of Greed." Two cards left his deck, but he nearly dropped them because of how much his hands were shaking. Looking at the two drawn cards…Shinsei closed his eyes and suddenly felt better. "What am I so afraid of?"

"You're afraid because you should have accepted my offer…" Victoran crossed his arms across his chest. "Well, make your move already."

Shinsei felt a hand touch his shoulder. ("Kenshin…")

_("I'm here partner…we won't lose to him if you believe in your deck and in what it represents. This man uses his influence and power to bully people around, that he does. And that cannot be allowed!")_ The samurai smiled slightly and faded away. _("Believe in yourself, and don't let his power worry you.")_

Shinsei opened his eyes. "He's right! The duel's still on, and in this turn your Guardian is graveyard bound!"

_To be continued…_

To Neo Arkadia: The names Bob and Jim don't inspire fear though…hell, they don't inspire any emotion other than 'wow, that's really plain'.

To Seeker of the Soul: Trust me, Airos isn't in danger in losing that easily, even to a couple of Vanguards. He's a very powerful guy, for more reasons that one.

To john: Airos isn't a Vanguard, ya know.

To Isumo: Sure, you can use them. But for the love of the gods, look your fic's older chapters over and correct some of the name spellings. Kiba? Tamias? On that note, please list what cards you will be using in your next review, just to satisfy my curiosity as to what theme you're trying to fill anyway.


	13. Radiance versus EHeroes

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 13: Victoran of the Humanity's Cross against Shinsei; Radiance versus E-Heroes

_Shinsei shakily drew, and slid the card into his disk. "Go Pot of Greed." Two cards left his deck, but he nearly dropped them because of how much his hands were shaking. Looking at the two drawn cards…Shinsei closed his eyes and suddenly felt better. "What am I so afraid of?"_

"_You're afraid because you should have accepted my offer…" Victoran crossed his arms across his chest. "Well, make your move already."_

_Shinsei felt a hand touch his shoulder. ("Kenshin…")_

_("I'm here partner…we won't lose to him if you believe in your deck and in what it represents. This man uses his influence and power to bully people around, that he does. And that cannot be allowed!") The samurai smiled slightly and faded away. ("Believe in yourself, and don't let his power worry you.")_

_Shinsei opened his eyes. "He's right! The duel's still on, and in this turn your Guardian is graveyard bound!"_

"Oh?" Victoran calmly stood his ground, not showing the slightest worry. "You can understand why I might find that rather hard to believe, can't you?"

"Sure…" Shinsei tossed a card onto his duel disk. "Go Bubbleman!" His favorite blue-armored superhero appeared on the field in an explosion of blue bubbles. "When this guy is summoned and I have no cards in play other than it, I can draw two." Sliding a pair of extra cards off of his deck, he fanned them out right in front of his face. ("I can win…I know I can win this duel!") "Go Metamorphosis! This magic card allows me to sacrifice a monster I have in play to special summon a monster from my fusion deck that is the same level!" A swirling blast of water appeared around Bubbleman as it changed, armor becoming sharper and better equipped to travel in water. "Bubbleman Neo (800/1200) is special summoned!"

"A weakling monster with no chance of defeating Radiance, fool." Victoran crossed his arms across his chest once more. "Please surrender to your fate, I've wasted enough time with you."

"Not a chance!" Shinsei snapped up another card. "Go Bubble Shooter!" A large bazooka-like weapon fell from the sky and landed on the shoulder of the superhero. "Bubbleman Neo's attack power in increased by 800 points!" (1600/1200) "Bubbleman Neo attacks Radiance, Bubble Shooter!" The superhero grunted as its weapon unleashed a powerful blast of water that struck Radiance and pushed the knight back a couple of feet.

Victoran scoffed. "Radiance, brush this annoyance aside."

"Yes sir!" The knight pushed against the water stream…and then let out a cry of pain as he exploded into dust. Victoran's eyes had widened slightly, but otherwise he didn't seem affected by this.

Shinsei smirked as the Bubble Shooter exploded. "Whatever monster Bubbleman Neo battles with is destroyed, and Bubble Shooter is destroyed instead of Bubbleman when he battles. I place two cards face-down on the field as a defense and then I end my turn." Rubbing his index finger under his nose, he coughed sharply. "It's such a shame that your Guardian was so easily brushed aside, no?"

Victoran drew the top card of his deck. "That hasn't happened in a long time. Perhaps your execution will not be as quick as I had hoped." Holding up the drawn card, he revealed Monster Reborn. "However, Radiance is far beyond anything you may have." There was a flash of light as the knight reappeared on the field. (3400/2500)

Shinsei grimaced at how easily that annoying knight had been returned to play. "What makes you think my face-down cards aren't traps meant to blow your warrior away?"

Victoran sighed. "I hate trap cards so…they represent the weakness that most duelists have…the insecurity to try and fight with their own strength and wits during their turn. A good duelist and a good Vanguard will leave their opponent unable to do anything of worth during their turn, instead of having to set trap cards. And with that I play my continuous magic card!" There was an explosion of light that came from his deck. "Tactless Determination! When this card is played, all trap cards in my deck, hand, and on my field are sent to the graveyard. After that, you may no longer activate any trap cards on your field. Also, if at any point I play a trap card, I lose the game." He pointed right at Shinsei. "Now there is no way for you to run from this fate! Go Radiance, slash through his warrior!"

"As you command!" The warrior drew its silvery sword. "Prepare yourself for death!" Yelling out a battle cry, he launched right at Bubbleman Neo without any fear of the monster's effect.

"I may not be able to activate trap cards on my field, but trap cards from my hand are still within limits! Reverse card open!" One of Shinsei's two face-down cards flipped up to reveal a card with a picture of Bubbleman wearing a magician's tophat and cape, and making a dramatic gesture. "Bubble Illusion is a quickplay magic card that lets me activate a trap card from my hand." Snapping up the only card in his hand, he smiled slightly. "Hero's Shadow!"

There was a flash of light and suddenly there were two Bubbleman Neo on the field. One was standing tall, while the other was crouched down on the field. It was the crouching one that was cut by Radiance's sword. In one explosive blast, the knight was blown away with the crouching Bubbleman Neo.

Shinsei grinned. "Hero's Shadow activates when an Elemental Hero is attacked. I can special summon a token of that Elemental Hero to the field in defense mode and redirect your attack to it."

Victoran didn't seem too surprised. "I assumed as much, which is why I was careful not to use any other cards during this turn. I play the magic card Careful Planning, which can only be activated if I have used two or less cards during this turn. It can copy one of those cards, at the cost of two cards from my hand. Monster Reborn!" There was a blast of light as Radiance reappeared in play. "Your efforts were for naught, fool."

Shinsei drew. "Let me be the judge of that!" Sliding the drawn card into his disk, he pointed at Victoran. "I place one card face-down on the field and switch Bubbleman Neo into defense mode. The turn goes back to you."

Victoran drew, little sparks of gold coming from his body. "Pitiful defense…and an even more pitiful play on your part! Radiance, ruin his chances of winning by cutting down his attack mode monster!" The knight launched in and slashed right through the superhero, blowing it apart. At that same time, an explosion of wind slammed into his Tactless Determination card and blew it apart. "Cyclone?"

"That's right, and that means I can use traps…right after your monster is destroyed of course!" Shinsei pointed at Radiance. "Later!"

"Fool." Victoran held up a card. "I play My Body as a Shield, to pay 1500 life points to negate that destruction effect."

Shinsei- 4000

Victoran- 2500

Shinsei shrugged and his face-down card flipped up. "Go Fusion Reflection Mirror! Metamorphosis and Bubbleman return to my hand!" Two cards came out of his graveyard and he added them to his hand.

From behind the wall, Kuruske smiled slightly. ("Well this is unexpected…most just faint from Victoran's sheer power…but in this boy's case, he seems unaffected by the fact that his opponent is so much stronger than him.") Something told him that maybe, just maybe, this boy might win.

"I set one card face-down on the field and end my turn." Victoran closed his eyes and waited patiently for Shinsei's next move. ("My face-down card will stop you cold, no matter what you try.")

"Draw!" Shinsei looked at the card he had drawn. ("Damn, this card won't do any good against this guy with the situation being as it is.") He threw a card down onto his disk. "Bubbleman (800/1200) in defense mode." While the superhero reappeared on the field, he drew two extra cards. Looking at the two extra cards, his heart skipped a beat. ("Actually…I might be completely wrong. With this kind of combo, I'll blow him away in one shot.") "I place two cards face-down on the field and play Mirage of Nightmare, end turn."

Airos widened his eyes slightly. ("Huh? Why didn't he use Metamorphosis to special summon another Bubbleman Neo?")

Victoran drew and his face-down card flipped up. "Activate counter magic card."

"Counter magic card?" Both Airos and Shinsei said at once.

"That's right. A counter magic card is a rare find, but for me it is quite useful. The card I activated is called Impossible Tax. When my opponent would draw cards this card is activated. The card that would allow the draw is destroyed, and the opponent must also offer an interest in the form of one other card on their field." Victoran still showed no emotion through all of this, which was starting to get on Shinsei's nerves.

Snarling, the boy sent his face-down Emergency Provisions and his Mirage of Nightmare into his graveyard. "There, happy?"

"Why would anything that you do make me happy?" The man pointed at Bubbleman. "Cut it down Radiance!" The knight held up his sword and the weapon released a beam of light that blew the superhero into dust. "I place one card face-down on the field and then I end my turn."

Shinsei took a deep breath and drew the top card off of his deck. "Believe it or not, this doesn't affect my plans too much." Sliding his drawn card into his duel disk, he placed the last card in his hand onto his field. "I place one card face-down and then I summon Elemental Hero Aquaman!" There was a blast of water that exploded out of the ground at his feet as a superhero wearing armor meant for the ocean appeared on the field in a standing position. (900/1100) "When Aquaman is summoned and I have no cards in my hand, I may draw three cards and then discard one." After doing so, he motioned at his first face-down card. "Go Metamorphosis! By sacrificing Aquaman…" The superhero disappeared in a burst of swirling water and was replaced by a powerful armor-wearing ocean warrior. "I can special summon Aquaman Diver!" (900/1100)

"Aquaman Diver?" Airos lifted an eyebrow at the monster. "It's in attack mode too…so what does it do?"

"I'm glad you asked Airos." Shinsei pointed at Victoran's field. "First, one magic or trap card in play is destroyed!" The higher level Vanguard's face-down card shattered. "Now comes the interesting part…and that is the destruction of Radiance because if the magic or trap card is destroyed, I can destroy a monster in play!" The knight exploded into pixels without making a single sound. "Go Aquaman Diver, Ocean Shooter!" A powerful jet of water exploded from the superhero's arm that struck Victoran.

Shinsei- 4000

Victoran- 1600

Shinsei felt his confidence rise to the max. ("I can win! I know I can!") "I place one card face-down on the field and then I end my turn!"

Victoran drew and inserted the card into his graveyard. "Pot of Greed." Drawing two more cards, he inserted them both into the graveyard. "Now I play the magic card Return of Warrior, which allows me to discard one card from my hand to add one warrior monster in my graveyard to my hand. Also, I select a second warrior if I discard a card from my hand." As Radiance's card returned to his hand, he placed it onto his disk. "And now I'll return Radiance to the field."

"Hang on a minute, your monster has a level of eight right? You have to sacrifice two monsters to just normal summon him like that." Shinsei knew the advantage was now his. ("This guy isn't anywhere near as scary as I thought when I sensed…")

The silver knight appeared on the field before Victoran, sword held up. "The card my partner discarded was Chivalrous Tribute, which when discarded allows him to summon my card without sacrifice during that turn."

Shinsei closed his eyes and took another deep breath. ("Its okay…this guy won't attack…not when I have two face-down cards.")

"I grow tired of playing with you. Open your eyes and feel the power that comes with becoming level four!" Victoran held out his hand and Radiance began to glow. "I offer Radiance to bring out his first release!" In an explosive blast of silver light, a glowing warrior a pair of shimmering short swords appeared in place of the knight, a helmet hiding its features. "Look upon your executioner, fool. This is Radiance's first release, Incandescence!" (4000/3200)

"Release? First?" Shinsei lifted one of his eyes brows in concern. "What…what did you do to him?"

"Every Guardian possesses the power to ascend to higher forms when their Vanguards reach level four…it is a powerful and very rare skill though that you must work for." Victoran pointed at Aquaman Diver. "Now die." The glowing knight launched in towards the superhero, sword lifted up to strike.

Shinsei snapped his hand. "You're the one acting like a rookie now! Go Hero Halo!" His face-down card flipped up, and then lit on fire from the powerful light coming from the knight. "What?"

"I told you that I hated traps…and it is reflected in the power of my Guardian. He negates and destroys all traps you play." Then Radiance's blades fell, carving Aquaman Diver into tiny little pieces that all shattered into dust.

Shinsei- 900

Victoran- 1600

Shinsei dropped to one knee and screamed in pain as huge cuts appeared along his chest, blood spraying from the wounds in huge arcs.

Victoran closed his eyes to the sight. "So unsightly…at least handle your pain with some dignity."

"S…shut up!" Shinsei leapt to his feet. "I won't fall to you…no…draw!" He somehow managed to draw, despite his pain. "Go Sennyu Spy Hero!" A grey figure appeared right next to Victoran. "By discarding the top two cards of my deck, one random magic card from your graveyard will go to my hand!" A card launched out of the man's graveyard and went to his hand. "G…g…go Pot of Greed!" Drawing two extra cards, Shinsei felt the blood he was losing pouring out like a waterfall. "I…I can't lose here! I will win this tournament! Go Miracle Fusion! By removing Bubbleman Neo and Aquaman Diver from the game, I will special summon Ultra Waterman!" A tidal wave erupted in front of him and a blue form slowly rose up into view. (1700/1600) "When this monster is summoned…I…I draw six cards." As he refilled his hand, Shinsei felt his vision waver and he slammed a card into his disk. ("Forgive me partner…but if I pass out I lose!") "Go Familiar Summon!" The concealed water form disappeared and a pair of Japanese sliding doors appeared in front of him. "Come…Kenshin…"

"Kenshin? Is that the name of your Guardian?" Victoran sighed once more. "This is taking far too long…and it isn't even interesting. It's just the squirmings of rat trying to escape his death."

"If you're wise you'll silence yourself right now, that you will." The doors opened and the red-haired form of Kenshin Himura stepped onto the field. "Kenshin the Wanderer of Twilight (1800/1500) appears."

Shinsei stood up, his wound gone. "Okay, it's time to tear down shiny man!" He slammed two cards into his disk. "Go United We Stand and Kaiser Sword!" A golden sword appeared on Kenshin's back and a blue glow sprang to life around him. "Kaiser Sword raises his attack points by 500, while United We Stand raises Kenshin's attack and defense points by 800 per face-up monster I have on my field!" (3100/2300) "Oh, but wait there's more!" Now he tried his best to sound like a game show host. "We also have a lovely consolation prize in the form of this continuous magic card called Thousand Selves! This card can only activate when I have a single monster in play. The rest of my monster zones are filled but as long as this card is in play I am considered to have four extra monsters on my field!" (6300/5500)

"Oh, the little rat has scrounged up a powerful monster from out of nowhere?" Victoran didn't reveal any emotions, even in his insulting words. "Then come and fight."

Kenshin drew his katana slowly. "Shinsei…together now…" And then he charged right at the glowing knight, blade ready to strike.

_To be continued…_


	14. Kenshin's Released Power

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 14: Kenshin's Released Power; Reverse-Blade Sword

_Shinsei stood up, his wound gone. "Okay, it's time to tear down shiny man!" He slammed two cards into his disk. "Go United We Stand and Kaiser Sword!" A golden sword appeared on Kenshin's back and a blue glow sprang to life around him. "Kaiser Sword raises his attack points by 500, while United We Stand raises Kenshin's attack and defense points by 800 per face-up monster I have on my field!" (3100/2300) "Oh, but wait there's more!" Now he tried his best to sound like a game show host. "We also have a lovely consolation prize in the form of this continuous magic card called Thousand Selves! This card can only activate when I have a single monster in play. The rest of my monster zones are filled but as long as this card is in play I am considered to have four extra monsters on my field!" (6300/5500)_

"_Oh, the little rat has scrounged up a powerful monster from out of nowhere?" Victoran didn't reveal any emotions, even in his insulting words. "Then come and fight."_

_Kenshin drew his katana slowly. "Shinsei…together now…" And then he charged right at the glowing knight, blade ready to strike._

Radiance was easily cut through, and exploded in a flash of glimmering silver energy.

Shinsei- 900

Victoran- 2600

Victoran frowned slightly at the fact that his monster had been completely destroyed, but otherwise he didn't seem very angry. "You're a troublesome rat. I'll have to make sure to cut you down quickly."

Shinsei gasped. "Why…why did you gain life points?"

"Radiance's original ability is that when he is destroyed as a result of battle the battle damage to me is negated and I gain 1000 life points. Also, when he battles a monster stronger than himself in attack or defense, the damage is zero. Essentially, the perfect shield in combat." Victoran felt a tingle of energy in the air and glanced behind him. "Who's this?"

Airos stared at the now standing Andrew who was next to him. "Wow…I didn't even hear you approach."

Andrew's eyes were clouded slightly, yet he was giving the impression of watching the duel carefully.

Victoran glanced back at Shinsei. "I grow weary of playing with you. Is your turn done?"

"Not yet, you jackass." Shinsei slid a single card into his disk. "I place one card face-down on the field and end my turn."

Victoran drew and held the drawn card up. A powerful blast of wind shook the field as all of Shinsei's cards exploded into dust. "Heavy Storm destroys all magic and trap cards in play. That means your monster's attack points have returned to 1800."

Shinsei felt his blood rise at that. ("This guy…this guy's pushing me farther than what is wise…") Snarling, he kneeled down and punched the ground a couple of times to break up the asphalt at his feet. "Watch…your…tongue!"

Victoran held up a card and Radiance, in Incandescence form, appeared on the field. "I activate the magic card Holy Rising. This card revives Radiance at the cost of my battle phase. I end my turn." (4000/3200)

Shinsei drew the top card of his deck. "I won't fail here! No matter what you say or what kinds of powers you have, you just got onto 'needs an ass-kicking' list!" The drawn card flipped up so that Victoran could see it. "Go Warrior's Rising Battle! This card increases the attack strength of all warrior type monsters in play by 500 points!" (2300/1500) (4500/3200) "Then I play Warrior's Honor! When more than one warrior in play gains attack points at the same time, all but the weakest lose that bonus and it is given to the weakest warrior!" (2800/1500) (4000/3200) "Go equipment magic card, Sword of Ten Souls!" A giant katana fell from the sky and landed in Kenshin's hands, its weight not affecting him at all. "The equipped monster must not have been destroyed during this duel for it to equip to him. In return, his attack increases by 1000!" (3800/1500) "Finally…go Ryu Tsui Sen!"

Kenshin strapped the heavy katana to his back and drew his normal, little motes of light coming to life around him. "It's the end for you…overkill…" Then he disappeared, appearing high in the air above the knight. "Hiten Mitsurugi Style; Ryu Tsui Sen!" (4500/1500) The blade fell and slashed Radiance down the middle.

Shinsei smirked. "Your effect…has been broken by Kenshin's Ryu Tsui Sen."

Shinsei- 900

Victoran- 2100

Victoran drew the top card of his deck. "I grow…"

"Shut up." Shinsei smiled calmly. "I've got your number this time, don't you get it? Kenshin's here…and Kenshin always wins every fight he ever gets in, because he's freaking Kenshin!" Sneering, he pointed at Victoran mockingly. "What do you have to say to that?"

Victoran discarded the card in his hand. "Go magic card, Radiance Revival." There was an explosion of light as Radiance appeared on the field again. (4000/3200) "This card revives Radiance, and this time he can attack!" The shimmering knight dropped down in front of Kenshin and swung his swords, but was blocked instantly as the Sword of Ten Souls exploded into dust. "Oh? What's this?"

"Kenshin, when he would be destroyed as a result of battle, may send an equipment magic card on himself to the graveyard to negate the destruction." Shinsei smirked and drew. Glancing at the drawn card, he licked his lips. "You're really tough to keep down, but this time you're a goner! Go Holy Slayer!" A shimmering sword made of white crystal landed in Kenshin's hands. "Go Kenshin, attack now!" The swordsman leapt through the air and met swords with Radiance. "The monster that battles with whoever holds the Holy Slayer is destroyed!" Both the crystal sword and Radiance exploded, while Kenshin was left unharmed. "It's done…just try and bring him back now."

Victoran drew. "End turn."

Shinsei drew and pointed right Victoran. "Go Kenshin, cut his ass into fillet!" The samurai launched in and swung his sword, and gasped as Victoran brought up a sword to block it. "What?"

Victoran's arm barely moved as Kenshin pushed against the opposing blade with all of his might. "Such a shame…but it looks like I'll stop holding back my power so much." Pushing with his sword, he shoved Kenshin back to Shinsei's field. "Now get away from me, annoyance."

Shinsei- 900

Victoran- 2100

Airos blinked in surprise. "Huh? Why weren't his life points affected? Did he activate something to protect himself?"

"You don't understand what a Vanguard Duel is, do you?" Victoran's sword pulsed a couple of times. "Simply having a good dueling strategy won't work if you fight an opponent who uses their energy. If your monsters can't connect with me, I won't get hurt. You must break my energy with your own to make your damage stick…"

Shinsei felt sweat trickle down his face at this announcement. ("I need to tap into a power I don't understand to even hurt this guy's life points?")

Victoran drew. "End turn."

Shinsei drew. "Kenshin! Go!" The samurai leapt in again, and his sword blows were deflected with ease by Victoran. "Damn it!"

Victoran drew. "End turn." He seemed almost bored now.

Shinsei drew, his eyes twitching wildly. "I'm going to kill you myself! Kenshin!" The samurai leapt in again and was again deflected. "ARGH!"

Victoran drew. "It's nearly over. I will give you this offer…in two turns…when the number of cards in my hand equal six…I will end this. End turn."

Shinsei snarled as loudly as he could and drew another card. "I'm so beyond done with you!" Looking at the drawn card, he had an evil little idea. "Check this out…mister 'invincible'…I place three cards face-down and activate Dou Ryu Sen! All magic and trap cards in play will be destroyed, and your life points will drop by 800 per lost card!"

"Overkill…" Kenshin snapped his sword along the ground rapidly. "Hiten Mitsurugi Style, Dou Ryu Sen!" There was a powerful surge of dirt and sound that swept across Shinsei's three set cards and blew them into nothing. And then the blast swerved and launched across the field towards Victoran.

Victoran watched its approach slowly…and then snapped his sword up to cleave the wave of sound and dirt apart. "Pointless…"

"What?" Shinsei's eyes almost bulged out of their sockets. "But…but…it was…effect damage…"

"Effect damage or battle damage is useless if your energy cannot power it. That was nothing but a weak shell of a blast that never even would have hurt me had I not stopped it with my sword…because now I am showing you some of my power. It makes me too tough for you to win…"

Shinsei just stood there…his eyes wide open in true fear now. ("So…so this means that I can't hurt him?")

Victoran drew. "You will die in one turn. Make your last turn count. End turn."

Shinsei dropped to his knees and punched the earth over and over again. "This…this isn't fair! How am I supposed to win against a freaking guy that can't be hurt? Why…why are you so intent on defeating me?"

Victoran closed his eyes. "I heard about you long ago…a duelist with the fire of a hero in his heart…who would rise as a Vanguard and reach near the top power of the strongest amongst us. I have come to strike you down now, before you become too strong and require more effort than just myself to deal with."

Shinsei punched the ground once more. ("I…Why am I afraid? This guy wasn't so scary a little while ago…")

"I've been playing with you from the start. If I had told Radiance to, he could have easily resisted all of your destruction effects and attacks by expending his power. I didn't even really use the power given to him by the First Release, I simply used the ability because of how much I knew your traps might have caused me problems. Is it crystal clear now? You can't win and you can't escape either." Victoran eyed Kenshin, since Shinsei wasn't looking at him. "Well? Will you surrender and make this easier for me?"

Kenshin looked behind him at Shinsei, and frowned. ("Shinsei doesn't have the power to deal with this type of opponent. In fact…I'm sure that even with years of training he'd never be able to defeat this kind of enemy…if I surrender and let myself be destroyed, then Shinsei will be spared.") Closing his eyes, Kenshin prepared to do just that. He'd announce his surrender and let Victoran destroy him permanently. ("I…I'm sorry…Shin…") His heart skipped a beat as he felt a trickle of something run into his body. ("Vanguard energy?")

Shinsei stumbled to his feet, eyes locked on Victoran. All around his body was a dull blue light that was getting stronger. "I won't lose to you…I refuse to surrender…I'll defeat you!" A blast of wind blew across the field and upset some dust, but otherwise nothing special happened.

Victoran lifted his eyebrows in slight amazement. "You…where did you get such strength from?"

Shinsei's eyes snapped wide open. "Kenshin! This is yours!" Drawing, he slammed the card into his disk. "Go equipment magic card! Reverse Blade Sword equips to Kenshin!" A sheathed katana fell from the sky and landed in the samurai's amazed hands.

"Shinsei…" Kenshin looked back at his Vanguard, and felt something terrifying there. It was a power he had never felt before from anyone…most Vanguard powers were strong and noticeable, but this one was beyond that. It was so angry and intense…the Guardian felt like he might just drop to one knee from its force. ("And I'm being powered by it as well.")

"Reverse Blade Sword raises Kenshin's attack power by 1000 points!" (2800/1500) Shinsei pointed right at Victoran. "Take this…my one hit kill!" There was a blast of light as a third symbol appeared on his wristband. "Vanguard power level three! I can once per game, for free, return one technique or equipment magic card to my hand from my graveyard or from my deck! Kenshin, attack with our ultimate overkill!"

Kenshin slowly drew his sword, showing that the blunt edge of the weapon was switched with the sharp edge, meaning any cut he did with it would only injure, not kill. "Victoran…despite your elite status and great power…you still are mortal. You made a mistake by giving us free time to strike! Prepare yourself!" He launched into the air over the Vanguard, he sword sheathed once more and his entire body shimmering with golden energy. ("This is it…Shinsei is giving me all of his energy again!")

Victoran looked up at the approaching samurai with mild indifference. "Hm…he's going to kill me?"

Kenshin snapped his sword free of its sheath. "Take this Victoran! Overkill…Hiten Mitsurugi Style; Ryu Tsui Sen Final!" (3500/1500/Instant Win against Enemy Vanguard) The samurai's body became a glowing comet of gold which dropped down right onto Victoran and filled the entire parking lot with a powerful shockwave that tore right through any unlucky walls or cars in its way.

Shinsei- 900

Victoran- 0

Kuruske covered his head and waited for the blast to settle before he poked his head up and out over the wall. ("Did he win? Could that be possible?")

As the dust cleared, Victoran stood off to the side of Kenshin, unharmed. "Oh? That was a rather impressive strike…it actually passed through my energy barrier…however…" (VLP: 10000) "It wasn't quite enough to surpass my skills."

"How…how?" Kenshin stumbled to his feet, only to collapse to the ground as he realized his energy was nearly gone. "You…your life points are...were…"

Victoran waved his hand once. "Spell of Force; Move!" Kenshin cried out in pain as an invisible force slammed into his chest and sent him flying back to Shinsei's field. "Don't you understand? I thought that as a Guardian you had once had stronger Vanguards than this. Figured it out?"

"Level Five…Spiritual Buffer…" Kenshin's memory of the ability came flooding back. "When the Vanguard's life points reach zero, depending on his remaining spirit energy, his life points will be restored." The samurai slowly stood up. "I…I'll let you take me…"

"Silence." Victoran waved his hand once more. "Spell of Force; Lock!" A series of chains made of golden light sprang to life and forced Shinsei to his feet as they tightened around his unconscious body. "This is where the execution reaches it end point." He slowly drew his last card from his deck.

"No! I won't let you!" Kenshin was about to charge in when he was swallowed up in a powerful explosion that destroyed him instantly.

"Final Destiny allows me to discard five cards from my hand to destroy all cards in play." Victoran grasped the hilt of his sword with his free hand, the blade shimmering with a holy and powerful light. "For your knocking me to zero life points, I shall show you my best…" His entire body was encompassed in a glowing ball of golden light. "Second Release." Turning the sword's blade to the ground, he dropped it and it slammed down to the hilt through the earth. "From my graveyard Radiance is revived…"

There was a blast of light as the blond-haired prince charming rose up from the ground, his silver armor replaced by golden armor and his entire body shimmering in that same holy light his Vanguard has released. "I shall end it here…feel my full power!"

Victoran looked upon the unconscious Shinsei with disdain. "You might never have been that fated Vanguard…we'll never know now, will we? Without a Vanguard in play…this will be your death."

Radiance shimmered even brighter. "My ultimate form…Creation!" (6700/4500) "And with it my final special ability…as long as there are no monsters in my partner's graveyard…my power increases by nine times its original amount." (60300/4500)

Kuruske covered his head and prayed that he wasn't sensed. ("This is the power of a level eight Vanguard, of their almighty Second Release.")

"For your possible crimes against humanity…I execute you, weakling." Victoran pointed at Shinsei. "I shall do you one more favor and use a technique card…just to make sure." A card appeared in his hand. "And that card is a simple technique…Holy Slash. It will raise Radiance's power by double if he is attacking a dark type monster…but since he isn't…just a minor raise of 2500." (62800/4500)

Radiance launched in and lifted his single short sword high, the energy coming from it strong enough to melt any nearby glass and decimate the asphalt underneath him. "Overkill…Holy Slash!" Then the blade fell and cleaved right into Shinsei's body roughly. For a few seconds nothing happened, and then the boy disappeared in a spray of blood.

Shinsei- 0

Victoran- 10000

Victoran turned away from the blood mess that the boy had become. "However…" Snapping his fingers, he gathered his energy for one last spell. "Spell of Force; Immolation." In a flash of flame, Shinsei's body was ablaze. "That is the end of it…" He started to walk away, and then tilted his head over to look at Airos and Andrew, the latter who was still unconscious on his feet. "Do you intend to do something to me in reprisal for his death?"

Airos just stood there, barely able to stand. "How…could…"

"I'll take that as a no." Turning, Victoran walked away without any worries of being attacked. ("He is terrified beyond belief…as he should be. Despite his unique defense talents…") He didn't even finish the thought as he walked out of sight.

_To be continued…_

Author's Notes: At this time I'm accepting submission of characters. Vanguards, not Vanguards, whatever is fine. So please send your characters in.

To Neo Arkadia: Nope…he lost.

To John: A Vanguard only gets lucky enough to simply lose his Vanguard status if his Guardian is in play when he loses. Unfortunately…Kenshin was blown up right beforehand. All of that damage went straight to Shinsei's body.

To Seeker of the Soul: Oh, when it comes to Yugioh stories I'm good at churning them out like a madman.

To Demon Fan: Victoran, and probably Andrew will keep that deck now.

To G.O.T. Nick: Radiance is really dangerous thanks to who his Vanguard is. Really dangerous…


	15. The Land of the Dead

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 15: The Land of the Dead

"Shinsei Zeru, awaken."

Shinsei groaned and rolled onto his side. "Let me sleep already."

"There is no time for sleep, or have you forgotten already? You were defeated."

Shinsei's eyes snapped open as his memories flooded back to him, of what had happened before. He had been defeated by Victoran…and then there had been burning pain, followed by nothing. All around him there was darkness, a living void that seemed to actively try and suck all light from everything. "Where am I? What happened?"

"You were killed." The voice was all around him, like the air itself was speaking to him. "And such a loss was great, hence why you are being given a single chance."

"A chance?" Shinsei tried to stand, but he couldn't move. It was like he was just a consciousness, with no body to control. "I still don't get it…if this is my chance, then what exactly…"

Suddenly he was standing, which meant his body was back. There was a dull gray floor, which held him up amongst the blackness of the void. On his arm rested a duel disk, already activated and deck already in place. "This place…"

"It is the location of your duel. This is your only chance to return to the living world. Defeat your opponent and destroy them, or else you will take their place. Is this acceptable?" The voice was still too strong and omni-present to be discerned as whether it was male or female.

"For a chance to defeat that high and mighty ass, I'll take any provided chances. I accept." Shinsei cracked his knuckles, ready to win and return to his world to settle the score he had with that jerk.

"Very well." The voice faded, and a humanoid form appeared at the other end of the gray platform. It brushed back its red hair and smoothed out its robes, the sword at its side indicating it was a samurai…a samurai Shinsei knew very well.

"Kenshin?" Shinsei's eyes widened in surprise at the fact that his opponent was his Guardian. "Wait…doesn't that mean…"

"Yes." Kenshin nodded solemnly. "If I lose this duel to you, then I will have my physical and spiritual body torn asunder, leaving me in a place worse than any concept of hell a human mind could imagine. And if you lose that will be your fate." A duel disk flashed into existence on his right arm, his robe's sleeves pulled back. "Do you wish to go first or should I?"

Shinsei snapped his arms up. "Wait! This doesn't make any sense, we're a team! Why do I have to try and destroy you for another chance at life?"

"I do not make the rules, I simply follow them." Kenshin drew his opening hand. "Prepare yourself, Shinsei. It is too late to look back now!"

Kenshin- 4000

Shinsei- 4000

Shinsei bit back his next argument and drew his opening hand as well, more on reflex than eagerness. ("This isn't right. Kenshin and I are partners, why should he and I fight each other?")

"I'm first, since you cannot decide." Kenshin drew the top card of his deck, adding the card to his hand masterfully and looking over each of the cards in turn. "Understand this before I begin, Shinsei." His eyes were deadly serious. "I will not hold back in the slightest. Defeat me at your best, or else I will tear you apart."

Shinsei tried to muster his resolve and return that look, but he actually flinched away instead.

Kenshin removed a card from his hand and lifted it up. "I play Reinforcements of the Army to search my deck for a level four or lower warrior type monster and add it to my hand." A card slid out of his deck, which he grabbed and placed it onto his disk. There was a flash of light as a human in armor carrying numerous backpacks appeared on his field. "I summon Supply Soldier in attack mode!" (0/0)

Shinsei blinked at the new monster as it tripped and fell, buried underneath its cargo. "You….you're serious?"

"Of course. This monster may not be able to deal damage, but when it is sacrificed I may draw two cards." Kenshin inserted another card into his disk. "I activate Withdrawal from the Army. This card sacrifices a warrior type monster on my field to let me add a level four or lower warrior type monster from my deck to my hand." His Supply Soldier faded away and another card left his deck. "I search for Blade Knight, and after adding it to my hand draw two cards because my soldier was sacrificed."

Even though his willingness to duel was very low, Shinsei still had enough sense to realize that Kenshin's strategy was off. ("He gained an extra card, but in return has to go with no monster to protect him during the first turn. That's not a trade-in most duelists would make. So either he isn't quite as good at dueling as he thinks, or those face-down cards are some kind of strategy to help him stop my attacks for the next turn.")

"What's the matter, Shinsei?" Kenshin's deadly serious look did not relent. "Draw your card."

"Oh…right." Shinsei half-heartedly drew the top card of his deck. His mind already knew which cards in his hand he would use, but his drive to do so was non-existent. "Kenshin…there has to be another way…"

"No, there is not. This duel will finish." The samurai sounded like he had no plans on changing his mind.

Shinsei frowned. "I'll find a way out of this without either of us dying!" He snapped the drawn card up. "I play Mystical Space Typhoon during my standby phase to destroy the set card on the left!" A burst of wind came from the card, and that burst swallowed up and shattered Kenshin's set card.

Without skipping a beat Shinsei threw a new card onto his disk. "Now I summon Elemental Hero Aquaman (900/1100) in attack mode!" A fountain of water came from the ground as a warrior dressed in a fish-scale suit appeared in play. "When Aquaman is summoned and I have no cards in play, I may draw two cards. If I do so, I must then discard one card from my hand." Sliding two cards off of his deck, he glanced at them both and then inserted one into his graveyard slot. "Aquaman, attack his life points directly!" The superhero leapt across the field and drop-kicked Kenshin on the shoulder, right before it returned to Shinsei's field.

Kenshin- 3100

Shinsei- 4000

("That's surprising, I was expecting some kind of trap.") Shinsei inserted two cards into his duel disk. "I place two cards face-down on my field and end my turn."

Kenshin calmly drew, unaffected by the kick. "A good starting play, Shinsei, but you were too careless. This duel won't be as cut and dry as you think." His face-down card flipped up. "Warm Household is a continuous trap that triggers during my standby phase. Now during each of our standby phases we gain 1000 life points."

Kenshin- 4100

Shinsei- 4000

He placed a card onto his duel disk and a silver-armored knight appeared in play. "I normal summon Blade Knight in attack position." (1600/1000) His cold gaze fell over Shinsei's two face-down cards, and after a moment he pointed at Aquaman. "Battle!" The warrior leapt across the field, sword raised to slash through the superhero.

"Reverse card open!" Shinsei pointed at one of his face-down cards and a green field of light appeared between Aquaman and Blade Knight. "Draining Shield will negate your attack and give me life points equal to the attack of the negated monster!"

Kenshin placed the card he had separated from his hand before he had declared his attack into his disk. "I play Broken Mirror. This quickplay magic card negates one attack-stopping trap card when played, and also negates that trap's other effects as well." The green barrier faded. "Therefore, since the chain is over, battle continues!" Blade Knight's sword slashed through Aquaman easily.

Kenshin- 4100

Shinsei- 3300

Shinsei braced himself against the powerful backlash of his monster being destroyed. As soon as he could he pointed at his face-down card. "I reveal Hero Signal! When a monster on my field is destroyed as a result of battle, I may special summon a level four or lower Elemental Hero from my deck to the field!" A large humanoid made of stone appeared on his field in a crouching position. "My choice is Elemental Hero Clayman (800/2000) in defense mode!"

Kenshin glanced at his hand cards. "Clayman's defense power makes it strong enough to withstand my Blade Knight even when its special ability is in effect, is that what you were thinking?" He slid two cards into his duel disk. "I place one card face-down on the field and activate Shield Crush, destroying one defense mode monster in play." A blast of green light fell over Clayman and it exploded. "End turn."

Shinsei grimaced and drew. ("His deck is prepared to deal with anything I can bring out, isn't it?") "During my standby phase, Warm Household raises my life points by 1000!"

Kenshin- 4100

Shinsei- 4300

He threw a card onto his disk and a blue-armored superhero appeared on his field, a small cloud of bubbles accompanying it. "I summon Elemental Hero Bubbleman (800/1200) to my field in attack mode! When it is summoned and I have no other cards in play, I may draw two cards!" Adding two more cards to his hand, Shinsei looked up at Kenshin angrily. "So the time we've spent together so far, our working together, was for nothing?"

"Exactly." Kenshin's eyes seemed to waver somewhere between their normal blue color and a goldish-yellow.

Shinsei gritted his teeth and moved on. "I activate Living Factory. This magic card lets me select one effect monster in my graveyard and add it to my hand. My choice is Elemental Hero Aquaman!" Holding up the called monster card, he used that same hand to grab another card and hold them up together. "I activate Polymerization to fuse Aquaman and Bubbleman together!"

The fish-scaled superhero appeared alongside its blue-armored counterpart and they were sucked into a swirling vortex above them. From within it emerged a version of Bubbleman that was wearing heavy diving equipment on itself.

"Elemental Hero Aqua Bubbleman (1400/800) is special summoned to my field, and when it is summoned, if I have no other cards in play but it, I may special summon one Elemental Hero from my deck!" A whirlpool appeared on the ground next to the superhero, and from within it a gold-armored superhero with very sharp-looking implements all over its body appeared on the field. "I choose to special summon Elemental Hero Edgeman!" (2600/1800)

Kenshin's golden eyes reflected no fear, despite the monsters he was facing.

Shinsei opened his field magic card slot and placed a card into it. "It's time for a change of scenery, I activate Skyscraper!" All around them huge buildings rose up into the sky, changing the void around them to a cityscape. "When an Elemental Hero on my field battles with a monster that is stronger than it, it gains 1000 attack points during the damage step! Aqua Bubbleman, attack Blade Knight now!" The ocean-traveling superhero leapt towards the silver knight. (2400/800)

Kenshin- 3300

Shinsei- 4300

Kenshin barely flinched as they clashed, the Elemental Hero easily winning. "When my knight is destroyed, I activate my face-down Heart-warmed Dreams trap card. When Warm Household is in play, I may send my hand back to my deck and shuffle. After that, I draw cards equal to the number I shuffled in plus two." He did so, and looked up just in time to get slammed into by Edgeman.

Kenshin- 700

Shinsei- 4300

Shinsei frowned at how calm his Guardian was acting. ("What's with him? Why is he so relaxed when he's losing so many life points?") "I proceed to my second main phase, where I set one card face-down on the field and activate the continuous magic card Mirage of Nightmare. End turn."

Kenshin drew. "During my standby phase you draw four cards, and I gain 1000 life points. During your next standby phase, those that you drew through the effect of Mirage of Nightmare become sacrifices to it when it randomly discards the same number of cards that you drew."

Kenshin- 1700

Shinsei- 4300

Shinsei's expression remained emotionless, though in his mind he wasn't worried about the downside of Mirage of Nightmare.

Kenshin could tell that Shinsei was smiling inside. "You think this is a game?" His dark eyes darkened even moreso. "I activate the field magic card Political Battlefield." All around them the buildings of Skyscraper shook and blew apart, leaving them both standing in a large open room that looked like it was meant to house a large number of very important people. "Within this place, whenever a monster I control battles with a monster of the same type as it, both monsters are destroyed and you take the attack of my monster in damage."

"That shouldn't be so bad, considering how powerful my field is looking right now." Shinsei shot a glance at Edgeman meaningfully.

"Indeed it is." Kenshin held up a new card. "I activate the equipment magic card Snatch Steal!" Edgeman shuddered and floated over to his field. "While equipped, Edgeman remains my monster. Also, during your standby phase you gain 1000 life points. However, that won't matter at all! Go Edgeman, Power Edge Attack!"

Shinsei gasped in surprise as Edgeman tackled his Aqua Bubbleman, both of them exploding upon contact.

Kenshin- 1700

Shinsei- 3100

Kenshin coldly pointed at Shinsei. "And because my monster was destroyed, you take Edgeman's attack in damage!" Lightning crashed down from the ceiling and slammed into Shinsei's body, sending him into a fit of spasms before he crashed to his knees.

Kenshin- 1700

Shinsei- 500

Smoke rose from Shinsei's kneeling body, and he wasn't moving at all.

Kenshin inserted two cards into his duel disk slots. "I place two cards face-down on the field and end my turn. Now, Shinsei, fight or be destroyed."

Shinsei slowly stood up, his shoulders still shuddering from the pain of the electrical attack. "I draw…and activate Emergency Provisions!" His face-down card flipped up. "I send one magic or trap card in play to the graveyard to raise my life points by 1000! My choice is obviously Mirage of Nightmare!" His continuous magic card disappeared. "Also, Warm Household raises my life points by 1000!"

Kenshin- 1700

Shinsei- 2500

He looked down at his hand and then slid a card into his disk, trying to shake off the dizzy feeling coursing through his body at the moment. "I play The Warrior Returning Alive, selecting a warrior type monster in my graveyard and returning it to my hand!" He held up Bubbleman and threw it onto his disk. "I summon Elemental Hero Bubbleman again! And like before, since I have no cards in play besides it, I draw two!"

Adding two more to his hand, Shinsei slid a card into his disk. "Go Bubble Shot! I equip it to Bubbleman and raise his attack by 800 points because of it!" A large bazooka-like device appeared over the superhero's shoulder. (1600/1200) "Bubbleman, attack directly!"

"Reveal Soldier of Fortune!" One of Kenshin's two face-down cards flipped up. "This trap card lets me special summon one level three or lower warrior type monster from my deck if I have no monsters in play!" A warrior wearing tin armor appeared on the field, a little tin lance in its hand. "Tin Knight (100/200) is summoned in attack mode!"

"I continue my attack! Bubble Shooter!" A blast of water went from the weapon's barrel to the knight, blowing it apart. "That takes most of your remaining life points, Kenshin."

Kenshin- 200

Shinsei- 2500

"True…" Kenshin watched as Bubbleman exploded into dust. "Did you forget about my Political Battlefield though?"

Kenshin- 200

Shinsei- 2400

Shinsei paled slightly. "Of course…not. Yeah…" He looked at his hand and frowned. "End turn."

Kenshin drew. "That might have been your end, but instead, during my standby phase, I remove Tin Knight from my graveyard, and send three cards from my deck to my graveyard to add one magic card from my deck to my hand." After fulfilling the requirements, he added a card from his deck to his hand. "Also, Warm Household raises my life points."

Kenshin- 1200

Shinsei- 2400

The samurai placed a card onto his disk. "I summon Queen's Knight." (1500/1600) A female knight in armor themed after a playing card appeared on the field. "Then I offer her as a sacrifice to my Familiar Summon! Emerge, Wanderer of Twilight!" His monster vanished and a holographic window appeared over his head to indicate he was in play now. (1800/1500)

Shinsei blinked in surprise. "You can summon yourself?"

"Indeed." Kenshin inserted the last card in his hand into his disk. "I activate the equipment magic card Divine Phoenix Blade!" A winged sword appeared on his back. "This card raises my attack points by 300." (2100/1500) Suddenly the samurai was standing behind Shinsei, his katana slowly being sheathed. "Lucky for you it was a weak equipment magic card." Then he was standing back on his field, while Shinsei was clutching at his chest where he had been slashed. "End turn."

Kenshin- 1200

Shinsei- 300

Shinsei stood up weakly and drew. "You made one mistake though…." Orange light flowed around his body as Warm Household increased his life points.

Kenshin- 1200

Shinsei- 1300

Kenshin lifted his eyebrows questioningly. "And what might that be?"

"It's this!" Shinsei held up a card with a picture of an orange and blue swirl. "I held back! Polymerization is the card I choose, which lets me fuse the Elemental Hero Sparkman and Elemental Hero Necro Darkman in my hand!" Black lightning crashed down across his field as a silver and black version of the lightning Elemental Hero lowered onto his field. "Come out now, Black Lightning Striker!" (2200/1400) "When this monster is summoned, one monster on your field is destroyed!"

Kenshin's face-down card flipped up. "And you have just placed yourself in the worst possible position. I reveal Bloody Past. This trap card activates when Kenshin; Wanderer of Twilight would be destroyed. Instead I may offer that monster to summon its next form!" His eyes became fully golden and his voice grew truly dark. "Kenshin the Battousai (2500/2000) is summoned…and with this dark form of myself comes a new power. I destroy all monsters in play with less attack power than my own, including monsters on my field." Black Lightning Striker yelled in pain as it exploded into dust. "Now your big advantage has disappeared, Shinsei. During the next turn I will kill you."

Shinsei frowned and held up another card. "Not yet! I activate Miracle Fusion! This card allows me to remove monsters from my field and graveyard to fusion summon an Elemental Hero monster! I remove Bubbleman and Clayman to special summon Elemental Hero Clayman!" (1900/3000) A large round-bodied superhero appeared on the field in a crouching position. "I summon it in defense mode and place one card face-down. End turn."

Kenshin drew. "My life points increase by 1000."

Kenshin- 2200

Shinsei- 1300

Looking at his drawn card, the dark samurai pulled three cards out of his graveyard. "Divine Phoenix Blade can be returned from the graveyard to my hand during my main phase by removing two warrior monsters from my graveyard." Holding up the two removed cards, he showed Queen's Knight and Kenshin; Wanderer of Twilight.

"You're removing your previous form? Why?" Shinsei narrowed his eyes, his entire body telling him that this was a truly dangerous situation. Kenshin was, without the slightest doubt, out to kill him.

"To prove that I am not the Kenshin you wish for, that is all. I have never been, and I grow weary of waiting for you to learn the truth behind me." He held up two cards. "I equip myself with the Divine Phoenix Blade first." The sword reappeared on his back. "My other effect is that when I am equipped with an attack-raising weapon, the boost doubles." (3100/2000) "Also, I equip myself with Relic of the Bloodiest War." A normal-looking katana appeared in place of his normal one. "This card normally increases my attack by 1500, but in this case, because you have a monster in play, I gain an additional 400." (6900/2000) "I attack!"

"Reveal Invincible Hero!" Shinsei's face-down card flipped up and a golden aura appeared around Mudballman. "During this turn, Mudballman cannot be destroyed!" He watched as Kenshin's form flickered to indicate his god-like speed attack. "It won't work Kenshin. And since the effect of your field magic card requires that my monster or yours be destroyed by the battle, its powers of destruction and damage do not activate."

Kenshin narrowed his eyes at Mudballman, a black aura around his body. "Disappear from my sight, weakling." Seconds later, the superhero faded. "Any monster I cannot destroy is removed from the game, thanks to Relic of the Bloodiest War. End turn."

Shinsei drew, but before looking at the drawn card he remembered those words. ("Grow weary? I don't get it…what am I missing? Is there something I haven't done yet?")

"I am one of the strongest kinds of Guardians, because my powers can increase and change with time. That is why I cannot understand how an energy-deficient fool like you could hope to drive me." Kenshin's fist clenched tighter. "Why can't you just figure it out already?"

Shinsei just stood there, trying to fathom what that meant. ("Does he think I have some kind of power? Of course I don't…")

_Shinsei stumbled to his feet, eyes locked on Victoran. All around his body was a dull blue light that was getting stronger. "I won't lose to you…I refuse to surrender…I'll defeat you!" A blast of wind blew across the field and upset some dust, but otherwise nothing special happened._

("That time…is that what he was talking about?") Shinsei lifted up his eyes to meet those hell-filled golden eyes. ("There is more to me than I think?") He didn't notice it, but his deck glowed a deep gold color for a moment. Glancing at the drawn card, he watched as the orange light of Warm Household increased his life points.

Kenshin- 2200

Shinsei- 2300

"From my hand I activate Pot of Greed!" Shinsei drew two cards. ("Featherman and Wildman…that's not enough.") "I activate Graceful Charity next, allowing me to draw three cards. After that, I must discard two from my hand." Adding three more cards to his hand, he discarded two. ("Still nothing, but I have one last draw card left.") "I activate Research on the Pot of Greed. During a turn where Pot of Greed has been activated, I may draw two cards." Adding two more cards to his hand, his eyes widened in amazement. ("What is this? These cards…")

Kenshin growled angrily. "What are you waiting on? Make your move already!"

Shinsei lifted up his eyes calmly. "You're not Kenshin."

"Excuse me?" The samurai grimaced. "I think you're losing your mind. You know I am who I declare to be, there is no other Kenshin, correct?"

Shinsei chuckled quietly to himself for a few seconds… "Really? Let me finish using these cards and then I'll ask again!" He snapped up a card and slammed it into his field magic card slot. "I play Kingdom of Legend!" All around them the conference room shuddered and collapsed, replaced by huge spires and other stone structures as they were transported to the inside of a giant castle. "Within this place, when I have no monsters in play, I can special summon one Elemental Legend from my hand to the field!"

The earth in front of him exploded upwards as a giant knight with a stone axe almost twice its size appeared on the field. "I special summon Elemental Legend Boulder Axeman!" (2800/1200) The giant warrior waited patiently, its helmet pointed towards Kenshin like it was watching him with disgust.

"What are you looking at?" Kenshin's hand reached towards the hilt of his Relic…

Shinsei threw another card onto his disk. "I normal summon Elemental Hero Wildman!" (1500/1600) A bronze-skinned wild warrior appeared on his field. "It's time for me to back up my words! I will win, but I won't hurt Kenshin! I activate Transcendence Fusion!"

Kenshin's eyes widened in true fear as a glowing portal filled with all kinds of different elemental forms appeared between the two monsters. "Transcendence?"

"That's right. I fuse Wildman and Boulder Axeman together!" Both of his monsters were pulled into the vortex. "And special summon Legendary Elemental Hero Wild Axe!" A much more powerful looking Wildman with Axeman's giant axe over its shoulder appeared on the field. (2600/2600)

"Its attack isn't even half of mine, what can it possibly do?" Snickering, Kenshin drew his sword, which was glowing with black energy. "I will slay it next turn."

"Sorry, there is no next turn." Shinsei smiled as Wild Axe lifted the heavy weapon above its head effortlessly. "Wild Axe is activating its special ability…Planet Shaker!" The axe fell and slammed into the ground, shaking the small platform nearly to the point of breaking.

Kenshin stumbled and fell to one knee. "What could that possibly…." His eyes widened as his two swords shattered, leaving him weaponless. "How could this be?"

"Planet Shaker forces all of the enemy's monsters to defense mode. Also, it destroys all equipment cards. Thirdly, all face-down magic and trap cards on my opponent's field would be forced to activate right now or be destroyed. Finally, all monsters in my opponent's hand would be forced to the field or to the graveyard if it was impossible for them to be special summoned." Shinsei shrugged. "Of course, only the first two effects were necessary."

Kenshin tried to stand, but no matter how hard he tried his legs wouldn't move. "I'm still in defense mode…you won't wipe out my life points!"

"True…" Shinsei pointed at Kenshin. "Go Wild Axe, Strike of Gods!" The warrior threw the axe across the field, the handle of the weapon crashing into Kenshin and nearly throwing him off the platform. "Now that your field is clear, I activate the second effect of Transcendence Fusion!" Wild Axe leapt into the still open portal, Wildman and Axeman emerging seconds later. "By sending it back to my hand, I can break down the fusion of my monsters! Go Axeman, Strike of Gods!"

Kenshin managed to stand up just in time to get slapped down again by the flat of the giant axe.

Kenshin- 0

Shinsei- 2300

Shinsei calmly watched as Kenshin screamed in pain and was blown into nothingness. "Nice trick…" He smiled slightly as the phantom form of Kenshin, the non-Battousai Kenshin, appeared next to him. "Apparently they thought I would be tricked. Good thing you woke up, huh?"

Kenshin smiled back at his Vanguard. "Now then, shall we go?"

"Yup. I have to return the favor to a certain someone with a trap-hater complex." Turning, Shinsei walked right off the edge of the platform and disappeared. His purpose was clear, and he intended to follow through with it. ("Victoran…I will defeat you this time. This time, it won't be an execution. It will a duel. And I never lose a duel when I truly mean to win.")

_To be continued…_

Notes: Elemental Hero Black Lightning Striker was created by Time Mage, not myself.


	16. Rematch of Soul

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 16: Rematch of Soul

The silence of the city was shaken by a loud explosion and a screech of pain.

Victoran- 4000

Airos- 150

Victoran calmly crossed his arms across his chest and sighed. "Boy, you were a fool for actually chasing me down and challenging me to a duel. I was planning on returning to my men, and instead you slow me down. For that you must pay." His mighty guardian, Radiance, stood on his field, its sword drawn. "Surrender and I will let you go."

Airos growled darkly and tried to stand, but the burns to his body were too much for such an action. "This…this is nothing! I won't let you get away with murdering my teammate…do you know how good a duelist he was? He would have helped us win this tournament easily!"

"Foolish boy, you think I care?" Victoran looked at the four cards in his hand, and then looked at Airos' empty field and hand. "You are on the verge of losing. It is your turn now, but I doubt your next draw will be useful."

Andrew just stood back, like Airos had told him to. He didn't understand any of this, but he knew that this man had killed Shinsei…and that someone had to beat him.

From his hiding place nearby, Kuruske felt the blood in his palms as he squeezed tighter and tighter. ("What's the matter with you people? Wasn't losing the beginner Vanguard enough proof…this guy can't be lose!")

Airos drew the top card of his deck, and paled at the sight of his Kaiser Glider card. ("I've lost…I can't even bluff.")

Kuruske saw the card as well, and frowned, tugging on his shirt collar. ("It looks like I'll have to jump in and try my luck. Jeez, I'm such a fool.")

"End turn." Airos lowered his head, waiting for the killer strike.

"No play at all? That's too bad." Victoran drew. "Radiance, attack his life points directly!" The holy knight leapt across the field, sword up and ready to slash the boy apart.

Airos heard a clash of steel right above his head, and he slowly lifted up his head to stare in awe at his savior. "Kenshin? That guy Shinsei summoned…which means…"

The samurai turned on one heel and kicked Radiance in the side of the head, sending the knight stumbling back. "For a holy Guardian, you seem to have some rather unsavory methods. You intended to kill that boy, didn't you?" Sheathing his katana, he grimaced. "It's alright though. You might have won against Airos, but now you try your luck against us."

"Us?" Andrew nearly leapt out of his skin as he felt a hand touch his shoulder.

"Yo Andrew. It's good to see you're alright, and I see that Airos made the stupid mistake of picking a fight with this guy when it wasn't necessary." Shinsei's eyes glittered in the light of the rising sun. "Wow, so it's already morning huh? That's too bad, I was hoping to get some breakfast before I tore this guy down too…"

Kenshin shrugged. "It can't be helped, right partner?" Smiling, the samurai pointed at Radiance. "You will duel us, Radiance of the Silver Heroes."

Victoran frowned in displeasure at this development. "I don't know how you survived, but thank you for coming to find me and saving me the time of having to hunt you down myself." He started to shuffle his deck up. "I'd think someone I beat already would be smart enough to avoid me like the plague."

Shinsei shrugged and finished shuffling his deck, slamming it home and winking to Kenshin right before his Guardian disappeared. "I guess I'm just a damn fool."

Airos slowly stumbled to his feet and looked back at the approaching Shinsei. "You are serious about trying this again?"

"Of course." Shinsei gave his teammate a thumbs-up. "Listen, go take Andrew to his mother's apartment already and make sure she's alright. I'll deal with this guy."

Airos gave a look of pure displeasure, but slowly nodded and walked over to Andrew. "We're leaving, come on!"

"But what about Shinsei…" Andrew's voice grew faint as he was literally dragged away from the alley they had been in, walking right past the hidden Kuruske without even realizing it.

Victoran drew his opening hand. "You truly are a strange human…"

Shinsei just smiled calmly and drew his opening hand. "I think that this time it'll go differently. Not to say I really changed at all, but you won't win because of some silly power you possess."

Victoran- 4000

Shinsei- 4000

Victoran slid the top card off of his deck and placed it onto his disk. "I summon Holy Maiden." (1200/1000) A princess wearing golden jewelry and white clothing appeared in play. "Also, I place one card face-down on my field and end my turn."

Shinsei drew. "Interesting…." He could feel the warmth of the sun on his back. ("This time will be different.") "Go Polymerization!" A swirling vortex appeared over his head. "I fuse the Elemental Hero Featherman and Elemental Hero Burst Lady in my hand together!" A woman in red and a man wearing a feather-covered suit appeared on both sides of the vortex and were pulled into it, emerging moments later as a single powerful being with a dragon for one arm. "I fusion summon Elemental Hero Flame Wingman!" (2100/1200) The superhero growled and suddenly launched across the field, a burning fireball of power that plowed through the princess and into Victoran, sending him stumbling backwards in pain. "Huh? I didn't tell him to attack…"

Victoran- 3100

Shinsei- 4000

Victoran caught himself before he moved back too far. ("What was that powerful blast of energy his creature unleashed?")

Shinsei shrugged. "Oh well, that is what I wanted him to do anyway! Flame Wingman's special ability is that when it destroys a monster as a result of battle you take that monster's attack in damage to your life points!" The disappeared Flame Wingman suddenly appeared in front of Victoran, blasting him a burst of fire from the dragon arm before returning to Shinsei's field.

Victoran- 1900

Shinsei- 4000

The boy placed another card horizontally onto his duel disk. "Now I summon Elemental Hero Memoryman (500/500) to my field in defense mode." A superhero wearing a golden top-hat appeared in play. "When this monster is summoned I reveal the top card of my deck to both of us. If and when that card enters my hand, I may at that time draw two cards." Pulling the top card off of his deck, he held it up to Victoran. "The card is Transcendence Fusion." Shuffling it back into his deck, he slid a card into his disk. "I place one card face-down on my field and end my turn."

Victoran growled in anger at the damage he had sustained so soon in the duel. "During the end phase of your turn, I activate the quickplay magic card Light Kindling. This card allows me to special summon one light attribute monster that was destroyed as a result of battle during this turn." His Maiden reappeared, singing brightly. "And now my turn begins." He drew. "During my standby phase, for every light attribute monster in play, my Maiden raises my life points by 500!" Light fell over him as his monster started to sing.

Victoran- 2900

Shinsei- 4000

Shinsei snapped his fingers. "Memoryman is a light…"

"And now my turn begins for real." Victoran opened his field magic card slot. "Castle of Light activates!" All around them the dank surroundings of the alley changed to the interior of a shining crystalline castle. "While this field magic card remains in play, all life point increases are increased by half their total. Also, I play the magic card Holy Song. By discarding one card from my hand…" He inserted a magic card into his graveyard slot. "…one monster in play will be sent to the graveyard and we shall both gain its attack in life points."

Flame Wingman let out a strange relaxed sigh and faded away. (2100+10503150)

Victoran- 6050

Shinsei- 7150

Shinsei frowned at that. He didn't want life points, he wanted his Flame Wingman and its damage effect.

Victoran noticed the look and replied to them. "Don't worry, during this turn I cannot attack you directly. As such, I will equip my Maiden with Holy Amulet." A golden amulet appeared around the neck of the woman. "This raises her attack points by 500, and when she destroys a monster as a result of battle I gain that monster's attack in life points. (1700/1000) Attack Memoryman, Holy Chorus!" The woman let out a shockwave of sound that hit the kneeling hero and blew it apart. (500+250750) "End turn."

Victoran- 6800

Shinsei- 7150

Shinsei snapped the top card off of his deck in frustration. ("Wait…I can use this card in combination with my other one!") "I activate Dark Factory of Mass Production!" Two cards slid out of his graveyard. "This card lets me add two normal type monsters from my graveyard to my hand! I choose Featherman and Burst Lady!"

Victoran coldly watched Shinsei, waiting to see what the boy had in mind next.

And Shinsei didn't disappoint. "Reverse card open!" His face-down card flipped up to reveal a green-glowing treasure chest. "Ghostly Guarded Treasure! By discarding two cards from my hand, I can activate this continuous trap card and special summon a level six or lower monster from my graveyard regardless of summoning requirements! I'm counting on you, Flame Wingman!" The fusion superhero reappeared in play, its body now phantasmal. "If the monster leaves play on my turn, I may draw two cards and the monster card must go to my graveyard. Flame Wingman, Flame Shooter!"

The Maiden screamed in pain as her body was lit aflame and burned to ash. At that moment Shinsei pointed right at Victoran. "Flame Wingman's special ability triggers now!"

Victoran- 5100

Shinsei- 7150

Shinsei slid the last card in his hand into his disk. "I'm not done yet either! Go De-Fusion!" The quickplay magic card he had been holding appeared on the field. "I select one fusion monster in play and send it back to the fusion deck. If that monster's fusion components are in the graveyard, I may special summon them all!" Flame Wingman shimmered and turned into a green cloud that was sucked into his graveyard. "Because of the effect of my Treasure, Flame Wingman must go to my graveyard!"

Two beams of light, one green and the other red, emerged from his graveyard and changed into the forms of Featherman and Burst Lady. (1000/1000) (1200/800) Right at that moment the Treasure chest exploded into dust, and Shinsei drew two cards right before his monsters came down as a pair and landed a ferocious double jump-kick to Victoran's jaw.

Victoran- 2900

Shinsei- 7150

Shinsei smiled and glanced at his two drawn cards before pointing at Victoran. "Alright, it's your turn now."

Victoran rubbed at his bruised chin in disbelief…and the snarled deeply. "Insolent dog…" He drew. "I activate Pot of Greed." Drawing two more cards, he threw one of them down onto his disk. "Come forth, another of my Maidens!" (1200/1000) Another of the glowing princess' appeared on his field. "Now, attack Featherman!" It let out an echoing song that washed over the superhero and blew it apart. (1000+5001500)

Victoran- 4400

Shinsei- 6950

Shinsei inserted two cards into his disk. "I place two cards face-down on the field and end my turn."

Shinsei looked down at his deck, and then at his hand. ("Here goes…") "Draw!" His eyes played over the drawn card, and he nodded calmly. "Alright, this'll work!" An explosion of fire came from his field. "I summon Elemental Legend Blaze Lancer!" (1600/500) An armored warrior holding an ornate red lance appeared on the field, the weapon aimed right at Victoran.

"Elemental…Legend?" Victoran felt something different about these cards. They were empowered with something beyond what he had ever felt before from anything, Guardians included.

Shinsei pointed at the Maiden. "Go Lancer, Flame Ender!" The warrior leapt across the field and slashed the lance's tip right through the princess, blowing her apart in a blast of heat. "When Flame Lancer destroys a monster as a result of battle, you take that monster's defense in damage!"

Victoran bit back his roars of pain as his body was engulfed in flame for a few moments.

Victoran- 3000

Shinsei- 6950

Shinsei pointed at Victoran. "Go Burst Lady! Burst Fire!" The superhero threw a fireball across the field that once again engulfed the Vanguard in flame. "End turn."

Victoran- 1800

Shinsei- 6950

Victoran slowly lowered his arms from his face, and glared at Shinsei's field. "I will make sure you die in a truly painful way this time." He drew. "I activate Emergency Provisions! By sending my two face-down to the graveyard, I will gain 2000 life points!" (2000+10003000) His two face-down cards faded away.

Victoran- 4800

Shinsei- 6950

"Also, both of the cards I sent to the graveyard had effects that trigger now. The first was called Crystal Chandelier. By sending it from my field to the graveyard, I gain 1000 life points." (1000+5001500) "Also, the other card was called Innocent Victim. When my Castle is in play and this magic card is sent to the graveyard, I may special summon Army Knight (1000/1000) from my deck to my field!" Victoran pointed at his field, where a plain-looking knight in simple armor appeared on the field.

Victoran- 6300

Shinsei- 6950

Victoran removed two more cards from his deck. "When my knight is special summoned, if I have no cards in hand, I may special summon two more of it from my deck to the field. After this, I may draw a card." Two more knights appeared in play alongside each other, and he drew. Sliding the drawn card into his disk, he smiled in success. "The Allied Forces increases the attack of all of my warrior monsters in play by 200 for each warrior or spellcaster type monster that I have in play." (1600/1000X3) "Attack Burst Lady!" One of the chagrining knights ran over the superhero, rearing up its horse in triumph.

Victoran- 6300

Shinsei- 6550

The noble pointed at the Flame Lancer. "Attack now!" Another of the knights charged and slammed into the Lancer, both of them exploding. (1400/1000x2) "Direct attack!" The last knight ran its lance into Shinsei's body, sending him stumbling back disoriented but unharmed physically. "It seems you ability to resist damage in a real Vanguard duel is increasing."

Victoran- 6300

Shinsei- 5150

Shinsei smiled slightly and brushed himself off. "Draw."

Victoran frowned once more. "Your arrogance is increasing…"

"Maybe it is. Then again, I don't care what you think!" Shinsei threw the drawn card onto his duel disk. "I summon Elemental Hero Bubbleman (800/1200) to my field in attack mode!" A blue-armored superhero appeared on his field. "When Bubbleman is summoned and I have no cards in play I may draw two." Sliding two more cards off of his deck, he continued to smile confidently. "And now it's time to turn this around. First to deal with your annoying life gain boost field magic card!" His field magic card slot opened and he placed a card into it. "I activate Skyscraper!" All around them the crystal castle shattered and left them standing amongst the giant buildings that represented the Elemental Heroes' ultimate battlefield.

Victoran's scowl deepened as he watched a large bazooka-like device appear over Bubbleman's shoulder. "Bubble Shot…"

"Right." Shinsei pointed at one of the knights. "After playing Skyscraper I equip my Bubbleman with Bubble Shot, increasing his attack by 800 points." (1600/1200) "Bubbleman, attack one of the Knights!" The weapon unleashed a powerful blast of water that slammed into the warrior and blew it apart.

Victoran- 6100

Shinsei- 5150

Shinsei clenched his fist in excitement. "I can feel it now. This is going to be a great duel from start to finish! End turn!"

Victoran scowled deeper. "You think this is a game, boy?" He drew. "Then let me show you just how much fun I can have when I play a 'game'! Go Chivalrous Battle! This quickplay magic card allows one Knight monster or Radiance to attack an opponent's monster with all power boost effects and equipment cards negated! That means your Bubble Shot's effect cannot save your monster! Battle!" The knight dove in and speared Bubbleman in the chest, blowing it apart. "End turn!"

Victoran- 6100

Shinsei- 4950

Shinsei smiled even wider. "You're just making it even better!" His eyes widened at the drawn card. "Alright! I activate Memory Search! This magic card can only activate if Elemental Hero Memoryman is on my field or in my graveyard. I select one card that has been revealed to both players during this duel from my deck and add it to my hand!" A card left his deck and he held it up. "There is only choice, and that is Transcendence Fusion! At this time, I draw two more cards thanks to Memoryman's effect."

"It doesn't matter what you draw…your fate is to die, boy!" Victoran clenched his fist tighter, and felt his blood rising.

Shinsei smiled and held up a card. "Fusion Recovery lets me add one Polymerization and one monster that were used in a fusion from my graveyard to my hand. My choice is Elemental Hero Featherman!" He threw a card onto his disk and that green-feathered superhero appeared in play again. "Featherman, attack his Knight!" (2000/1000) The superhero kicked through the warrior easily.

Victoran- 5300

Shinsei- 4950

Shinsei just kept smiling as he slid a card into his duel disk. "I'll set one card face-down. End turn."

Victoran drew, his temper back in check. "I grow weary of playing. It is time!" His body started to glow. "Emerge, Radiance!" Light fell down over the field as the glowing form of his Guardian appeared in play. (3400/2500)

Radiance slowly drew his sword, his shining perfect teeth and blond hair glittering, even in the dim lights of Skyscraper. "Radiance of the Silver Heroes is here, run in fear villains!"

Victoran snapped up his hand card. "I quickplay Mystical Space Typhoon!" A blast of wind slammed into Shinsei's set card and blew it apart. "The Allied Forces powers up Radiance by 200 points! Holy Slash!" (3600/2500) The glittering warrior leapt across the field and slashed through Featherman.

Victoran- 5300

Shinsei- 3350

Victoran sneered darkly. "Your advantage of Skyscraper is useless against such a high attack power monster. End turn."

Shinsei snickered and removed a card from his graveyard. "During your end phase, I'll activate the card I had set face-down. It's called Inadvertent Rescue, and during the turn it is destroyed by an opponent's card effect, I may remove it from the game to set a trap card and a magic card from my deck onto my field." Selecting two cards from his deck, he placed them both face-down and drew. "Now I reveal my first card, Graceful Charity! This card allows me to draw three cards and then discard two from my hand."

Right as he inserted two cards into his graveyard, his face-down card flipped up. "Dark Graceful Charity is a trap card that sends all cards discarded by magic cards from my graveyard back to my hand." The two discarded cards were spat back out and added to his hand. "I'm ready…with these cards, I will not only defeat Radiance this turn and nearly wipe out your life points, but I'll make sure that he never sees play again for the rest of this duel."

_To be continued…_


	17. Wrath of the Holy Knight

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 17: Wrath of the Holy Knight

_Right as he inserted two cards into his graveyard, his face-down card flipped up. "Dark Graceful Charity is a trap card that sends all cards discarded by magic cards from my graveyard back to my hand." The two discarded cards were spat back out and added to his hand. "I'm ready…with these cards, I will not only defeat Radiance this turn and nearly wipe out your life points, but I'll make sure that he never sees play again for the rest of this duel."_

"As amusing as it may be for you to make such foolish boasts, I am in no mood to play along. Make your move or end your turn, either way you will lose all the same." Victoran's hand flexed tighter and tighter, the bones of his hand cracking as his own power started to push against his body. "I grow sick of this."

Shinsei snapped up a card from his hand. "I activate Polymerization!" A swirling vortex of energy appeared in the sky over their heads. "I fuse Elemental Heroes Shadowman and Necro Darkman together!" A red-skinned hero with a bone arm and a black-formed hero appeared on the field and then were pulled into the vortex. "Fusion summon! Elemental Hero Necro Lockman!" (1000/1200) A large red-skinned humanoid covered in chains which were bound together by a single giant key-lock hanging from its chest appeared on the field.

"Necro Lockman? Its attack power is only 1000, therefore even with the strength boost from your Skyscraper card, it would only have 2000 attack points. How do you expect to defeat Radiance for good with that kind of power?" Victoran felt his power subside within him, as he relaxed. This was no true threat to him.

"I don't." Shinsei placed another card onto his duel disk. "But the threat of defeat isn't from my Necro Lockman, but from this!" A giant bare-chested warrior with a huge sword over its shoulder appeared on the field. "I summon Elemental Hero Rageman!" (2000/0) "Rageman, attack Radiance now! Rage Slash!"

Radiance watched as the giant warrior leapt at him, sword drawn. "This must be a joke."

Shinsei felt his blood rushing through his body in his excitement. "No joke at all! When Rageman attacks an opponent's monster he gains half of that monster's attack until the end of the battle phase!" (3800/0)

Radiance widened his eyes and tried to block, but the blade of the superhero easily slashed through his defenses and blew him apart.

Victoran- 5100

Shinsei- 3350

Shinsei pointed at Victoran. "Necro Lockman, direct attack! Necro Chains!" The undead warrior snapped its hands into the earth and spiked chains exploded out of the ground around Victoran, binding his duel disk and body in place. "First the damage!" The chains tightened, cutting into his skin.

Victoran- 4100

Shinsei- 3350

Victoran's duel disk started to whine in protest as the chains forced themselves into its graveyard slot. A few seconds later the chains yanked themselves out, carrying a single card with them. It was Radiance's monster card. "No! What are you doing?"

Shinsei snickered as the chains locked Radiance's card to Necro Lockman. "Necro Lockman, when it deals you damage, allows me to select one monster from your graveyard and remove it from there, placing it under my monster. After that, every one of my standby phases, I may remove another monster from your graveyard and place it under Necro Lockman. During your standby phase, for every card I have under my monster, you take 100 points of damage!"

He pointed at Rageman, which exploded. "At the end of my battle phase, Rageman is destroyed. Also, during the turn that Rageman is destroyed I may send one continuous card on the field to the graveyard. End turn." The Allied Forces disappeared.

Victoran snarled and drew. "You won't lock my monster out!" A single spiked chain swiped across his chest, taking 100 life points from him.

Victoran- 4000

Shinsei- 3350

The noble slammed the drawn card into his duel disk. "I activate the magic card Swords of Revealing Light!" A storm of glowing green swords of light slammed down between their fields. "For my next three turns, you cannot attack. End turn."

Shinsei drew. "During my standby phase, I remove your Maiden that you lost at the beginning of the duel!" A card was yanked out of Victoran's graveyard and patched onto Necro Lockman. "End turn."

Victoran drew, trying to ignore the stinging pain from the chains that attacked him. ("Why are his attacks hurting me now? They barely affected me just an hour ago…")

Victoran- 3800

Shinsei- 3350

Looking at his drawn card, Victoran nodded calmly and placed it onto his disk. "I summon Blade Knight." (1600/1000) A silver-armored knight appeared on his field. "This monster, when I have one or fewer cards in my hand, has its attack increased by 400." (2000/1000) "Now Radiance will be freed with the defeat of your annoying hero! Blade Knight attack!" The knight charged forward and slashed Necro Lockman across the chest. However, nothing happened. "What?"

"Necro Lockman can remove one of his seized cards from the game to prevent himself from being destroyed because of an attack." Shinsei watched as the Maiden card disappeared. "Sorry, it's not quite that easy. On that note…" He smiled as Blade Knight was cut to shreds by a storm of chains. "Did you forget Skyscraper's effect?" (2000/1200)

Victoran's eyes widened. ("How could I have made that mistake?")

Shinsei drew. "I'll assume it's my turn, and remove your Blade Knight." The card was patched onto his Necro Lockman instantly. "End turn."

Victoran drew, wincing as those chains slashed him again.

Victoran- 3600

Shinsei- 3350

The noble Vanguard placed another card onto his disk. "I summon another Blade Knight, which has its attack power increased by 400." (2000/1000) Another of those silver knights appeared on his field. "End turn."

Shinsei drew, and one of the three Knights from before were removed and added to Necro Lockman. "Alright, it looks like things are going as planned. End turn."

Victoran took a deep breath and drew. "I will not be defeated by you." Right after he drew, the swords of glowing light shattered and he was attacked once more by those chains.

Victoran- 3300

Shinsei- 3350

Victoran held up the drawn card, and a holy light fell over the field. "Card of Sanctity lets me draw until I am holding six cards in hand, and since you have six cards in hand nothing happens for you." He opened his field magic card slot and placed a card into it, showing the slight signs of a sneer as the cityscape around them exploded into nothingness. "I play the field magic card Radiance Valhalla!" They were now standing in a peaceful field of wheat. "This card allows Radiance to increase its attack by 1000 for every card in my hand. Also, when I gain life points that number is increased by 1000 if Radiance is in play."

"Both effects won't help you here." Shinsei motioned to his superhero, which had waves of red and black energy coming off of it. "Necro Lockman is making sure that your monster won't be coming out."

"Is that so?" Victoran inserted a card into his duel disk and the three cards patched onto Necro Lockman shattered. "I play Form Freedom. This quickplay magic card allows all sealed and locked cards to return to their original positions. That means Radiance and my other two monsters return to my graveyard."

Shinsei grimaced. ("Great, there goes my lock…")

Victoran slammed another card into his disk. "Holy Rising returns Radiance at the cost of my battle phase!" (3400/2500) The glowing knight appeared in play once more. "Also, for every card in my hand, his attack increases by 1000." (6400/2500) "However, it matters not! I activate First Release!" Radiance was engulfed in a pulsing pillar of light, and when that light disappeared there was a much more powerful knight in its place. "Incandescence has been summoned, and with my field card he is even more powerful." (7000/3200) "End turn."

Shinsei looked down at his deck and exhaled sharply. "Whew….this might be a pinch. Let's see what I can pull out then." His eyes widened at the drawn card. "Sure, why not? I activate Sennyu Spy Hero! By sending the top two cards of my deck to the graveyard, I can add one random magic card from your graveyard to my hand!" The magic card changed into a different one, and looking at it he had to smile. "Pot of Greed anyone?" Drawing two more cards, he looked at his hand and nodded at it, as if it was speaking to him. "Alright, it's time to show you just how serious I am!"

Lightning crashed down around his field as a blue and yellow superhero appeared on his field. "I summon Elemental Hero Sparkman!" (1600/1400)

Victoran sneered calmly, the light coming off of Radiance strong enough to overpower the light of even the sun above them. "What can that weakling do? All it will take is one attack from Radiance and I'll win if that is the best you can throw at me."

Shinsei looked dead serious now. "You think your light guy is so hot, huh? That he's just the top and best there is in the realm of light monsters?" His expression cracked a little with a smile. "Let me show you my big light guy, with the help of this magic card! Go Miracle Fusion!" His field started to pulse with a strange light. "This magic card allows me to remove monsters from my field and graveyard to special summon a Elemental Hero fusion monster! I remove Sparkman and Flame Wingman from the game!" The two named heroes appeared in the air above him right before they dissipated like a pair of illusions. "I'm giving you my full trust, Shining Flare Wingman!"

From the sky above them, a single star of light appeared. It grew brighter and brighter, until it revealed itself to be a humanoid form covered in glowing metal armor. Stretching its metal wings, the new monster let out a strangely controlled battle cry and stretched its body, powerful green light coming from every inch of it. (2500/2100)

"2500 attack points?" Radiance lifted an eyebrow at the monster. "You get an A+ for presentation, but an F for actual substance."

"Actual substance?" Shinsei smiled slightly as his graveyard slot became filled with the same light that was coming from his Shining Flare Wingman. "For every Elemental Hero monster card in my graveyard, the attack of Shining Flare Wingman is increased by 300 points!" (4600/2100)

Victoran continued to sneer. "Closer, but not close enough thanks to my field card."

"Yeah, about that…" Shinsei slammed a card into his duel disk. "I activate the quickplay magic card Ancient Advisement!" His Necro Lockman shattered. "By sacrificing Necro Lockman, I choose one Elemental Legend from my deck of equal or lower level and special summon it!"

"Another of those things?" Victoran grimaced. "Give it up, boy. Those things are even more pathetic than your heroes!"

"That's big talk coming from someone who has only seen one effect so far from them!" Shinsei threw a card onto his disk, and a light-clothed female warrior holding a pair of large pistols appeared on the field. "Elemental Legend Breeze Gunner reporting in!" (1900/1300) "I activate her effect by removing two magic cards from my graveyard. One magic or trap card in play will be destroyed!" Pulling Sennyu Spy Hero and De-Fusion out of his graveyard, he pointed up at the sky. "Aero Breaker!" The woman aimed one of her pistols up and fired, the blast so loud it even forced Shinsei to cover his ears.

A loud crack appeared in the sky, and it started to spread amongst the rest of the field…and then in one deafening creak, the entire thing came crashing down on them like a broken pane of glass.

Victoran's eyes went wide in fear. "No, that means Radiance's attack points…"

"…return to 4000." Shinsei smiled like a cat that had just caught its prey. (4000/3200) "Also, because there is another Elemental Hero in my graveyard, Shining Flare Wingman gains another power boost!" (4900/2100) "It's over Victoran!" The radiant form of his superhero launched into the air above Radiance. "Shining Flare Wingman attacks Radiance! Shining Shooter!"

Radiance made out one last yell of pain before he was vaporized as the nearly nuclear superhero dive-bombed into him.

Victoran- 2400

Shinsei- 3350

Victoran snarled and braced himself. "It matters not, I will recover…"

"I don't think you understand the danger of my Shining Flare Wingman. It is the evolution of Flame Wingman…" Shinsei's smile grew coy. "As such, when it destroys a monster as a result of battle, you take that monster's attack in damage to your life points."

Victoran suddenly realized why Shining Flare Wingman hadn't returned to Shinsei's field yet. It was charging up an attack. "Impossible…" Then he was swallowed up by the pulsing power from the Elemental Hero's effect.

Shinsei crossed his arms across his chest, and when he opened his eyes to look at the aftermath, he wasn't surprised by what he saw. "Of course, Spiritual Buffer…your remaining spiritual energy has been converted into life points, which means that the lower your life points become, the lower your energy will become."

Victoran- 7500

Shinsei- 3350

Victoran clutched at his chest, smoke rising off every part of him. He was panting, and not looking dignified in the slightest. ("This is impossible…impossible! How could his strength have gone from zero to up in the range of mine?")

Shinsei calmly pointed at Victoran's Blade Knight. "And now I attack your Knight with Breeze Gunner! Aero Bullet!" The woman fired a single shot from one of her pistols, blowing the knight apart instantly.

Victoran- 7200

Shinsei- 3350

Shinsei inserted a card into his disk. "I place one card face-down on my field, and end my turn." His eyes were determined now. ("By the end of this duel your power, that power you used, will be gone.")

"I will not be defeated by a mere boy!" Victoran drew, snarling at the smoldering embers that hung on his clothing. "This card will smash your resolve! I send two warrior monster cards, Big Shield Gardna and Exiled Force from my hand to the graveyard to special summon Peruses Divine Warrior!" A golden knight with huge golden wings coming out of its back appeared on the field and bellowed a battle cry in challenge to Shinsei's warriors. (2600/2300) "When this monster is summoned, for every warrior monster in play I may lower the attack of one monster on the field by 1000 points!" The noble pointed at Shining Flare Wingman. "Therefore, I choose that imposter!" (1900/2100) "Divine Slayer!"

Shinsei's eyes widened in amazement as he watched Shining Flare Wingman get cut down instantly.

Victoran- 7200

Shinsei- 2650

"Now I activate the effect of my Divine Warrior!" Victoran discarded the single card he was holding. "When my monster destroys a light monster as a result of battle, it may attack once more. However, this time the attack is direct!" The winged warrior launched right over Breeze Gunner and slashed Shinsei down the front, before returning to Victoran's field.

Victoran- 7200

Shinsei- 50

Shinsei's face-down card flipped up. "Go Soul Replenishment! At the end of a battle phase, all battle damage I have suffered is recovered!"

Victoran- 7200

Shinsei- 3350

Victoran growled in anger, his body slowly being surrounded by an aura of blue energy. "End turn."

Shinsei drew. ("He defeated Shining Flare Wingman, that's a first.") Looking at the drawn card, he nodded in understanding. "This duel isn't done just because of one big monster! I summon Elemental Legend Holy Swordsman!" (1500/1000) A single-clothed hero with an elegant sword that had a blade resembling the wing of a bird over one shoulder appeared in play. "This guy is another of my trump cards. While he is in play, for every magic card in my graveyard, he gains 100 attack points." (2500/1000) "Of course that won't be enough to beat your monster, but then again his other effect should still make a difference in this duel! Final Strike Build-up!" Light started to pour from the warrior's body. "By allowing only one monster on my field to attack during this turn, I may add half the attack of my Holy Swordsman to one monster on my field!"

Breeze Gunner lifted up her weapons, that light that had been coming from the Swordsman now coming from her body. (3450/1300) Shinsei pointed at Victoran's warrior. "Aero Shooter!" She took one pot-shot and blew the warrior's head off, its body disintegrating instantly.

Victoran- 6350

Shinsei- 3350

After looking at his hand, Shinsei took a deep breath to curb his excitement. ("I can win, but for the moment I need to take a breather. This guy is tricky.") "End turn."

Victoran's hands were steady now, and his eyes were murderous. "I am tired of this game. I will show you it…my ultimate power. I will activate Second Release now…" He drew. "…and wipe you from the face of existence! Revive yourself!" The holy form of Radiance appeared on his field, its body pulsing with a new energy…the energy of its Vanguard. "Emerge….Creation!" The light around his monster grew so bright it seemed to melt the stone walls next to them. "Boy…you will die now!"

As the light faded, a gold-armored Radiance now stood on the field. "I am Creation!" (6700/4500) "Victoran, prepare the end."

"Indeed! I activate Purge Thy Body! All cards in my graveyard are removed from the game!" His duel disk spat out his entire graveyard. "And because I have no monsters in my graveyard now…Radiance's attack power is multiplied by nine!" (60300/4500)

Creation looked upon Shinsei's wide-eyed form with sadness. "I am sorry, but my partner is adamant. You must die. I hope in Heaven you can forgive me for my impudence, but this is the end! Shall we, partner?"

Victoran's body was engulfed in blue energy. "Our second to best technique…Stream of Holy Armageddon!" The sky seemed to split, revealing a glowing dimension of golden light. "For every card I have removed from play, the attack power of Creation is increased by 100 points!" (63500/4500) "This attack isn't meant to be ferocious for its attack increase. It is ferocious because when my opponent is hit by it, they are hit by a continuous flow of holy power. Even the strongest of Vanguards cannot stand against this attack…so I will end it now!"

Kuruske felt his entire body start to shake from the force of the building energy. ("This is too much…he'll destroy everything in a mile radius if he lets it off like it is!") His body told him to run, but his curiosity told him to stay. ("I guess I'll only get to see something like this once…might as well enjoy it for as long as it lasts.")

Shinsei just stood under that dimensional hole, his eyes calmly watching it. He was unafraid, though whether because he didn't understand the danger or because he was confident, even he wasn't sure. ("Why am I not afraid? This kind of attack could kill me easily…even if I didn't believe in the whole Vanguard thing, the damage level of this kind of power would be represented by a fatal strike by the Solid Vision system on the duel disks.")

"Take this boy! Creation, attack now!" Victoran's eyes were glowing blood red. "Feel my divine wrath, child."

The knight snapped his sword up into the sky. "Overkill…Stream of Holy Armageddon!" Then the dimension turned into a waterfall, dropping its glowing contents over Shinsei's field in a small stream, which rapidly began to expand and tear apart the walls on both sides of the alleyway.

_To be continued…_


	18. The Falling Golden Blade

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 18: The Falling Golden Blade; Celestial Samurai Kenshin

"_Take this boy! Creation, attack now!" Victoran's eyes were glowing blood red. "Feel my divine wrath, child."_

_The knight snapped his sword up into the sky. "Overkill…Stream of Holy Armageddon!" Then the dimension turned into a waterfall, dropping its glowing contents over Shinsei's field in a small stream, which rapidly began to expand and tear apart the walls on both sides of the alleyway._

Shinsei's eyes widened and he threw up his arms right before he was consumed by the torrent of golden energy, its very existence burning his flesh. He thought he heard the scream of his Breeze Gunner from somewhere within that light, but the pain was too much. He was unable to concentrate and he could feel his body slowly melting away. ("Damn, and I was doing so well too.")

Victoran felt that power plowing down on top of his opponent, and his wrath increased. ("Feel my rage for making a fool of me, you speck!")

-------------------------

From a few buildings away, a robed female form stood watching the downpour with amazement in her eyes. "For one such as Victoran to have to use this kind of move, his opponent would have pushed him into a corner. Is it you, Shinsei?" Brushing back the hood, Megumi watched the destructive force of a full power Vanguard at work. It was consuming the surrounding two buildings, easily beginning to evaporate them. "This isn't good…there's no way he could have survived. I must go inform him of this."

"_There is no need."_ A phantom voice said. _"I can see all of this already, and I must admit that it seems to be about time for the boy to realize it. To realize he can beat this attack and stop it from destroying the surrounding city by negating it with an equal load of power."_

Megumi's eyes widened. "An equal burst of power? From Shinsei? But he just started being a Vanguard yesterday, how could he possibly hope to accomplish such a thing?"

"_How, I wonder?"_ The voice went silent as a pulse of energy passed by them, like a heartbeat.

Megumi froze and slowly turned to look at the torrent, which had stopped growing in size. "No way…"

--------------------------------

Victoran had a similar look on his face, because he could see why his attack had been stopped. "You cannot possibly do such a thing. You are no more powerful than any other mortal!"

Shinsei's arms trembled in pain, but he was doing the impossible. He was holding the torrent away from him by just a few inches by using his hands. ("I won't lose here! It's my destiny to move on! I will become the winner of this tournament.") "Do you hear me? I will win this tournament!" His voice became a howling scream that became an arrow of emerald green light that pierced the torrent in the middle and slowly forced it back towards the opening it had used to enter this dimension.

Victoran felt his arms trembling, and realized that Shinsei was fighting directly against his power. "I will overwhelm your pitiful senses!" He pushed his power forward as hard as he could, preparing to crush the boy beneath his second to strongest attack. "You cannot stand against my strength. I am a noble of the Humanity Cross…I cannot lose to a novice like you!"

Shinsei kept screaming, and his blast kept pushing the stream back into the hole it had come from.

Victoran pushed back, but he couldn't gain any footholds. ("It's like a relentless train being in my path, and I am trying to stop it with my bare hands!") He felt his power start to give out. "I…I…"

An echoing bang shoot the air. Moments later the hole in the sky slowly closed.

Shinsei just stood there, eyes blank and looking up at the sky. Slowly his vision returned and he tilted his head down to look at Victoran. "Huh? Did I lose?" He looked at the life point score on his disk.

Victoran- 6350

Shinsei- 1

"Gah!" The boy's golden eyes bulged out of his head. "I lived through it?"

("His life points didn't reach zero?") Victoran clenched his fist tightly, trying to regulate his breath so he didn't have to look tired to this boy's eyes. ("That was not a possible situation…he shouldn't have been able to scrounge up that much power to counter my attack.")

Shinsei realized his hand cards were lying all over the place, and quickly scurried to pick them all up, barely noticing he was limping. "Hey, since you have no cards in your hand, that means it's my turn, right?"

Victoran nodded slowly, his calm demeanor returning. ("It doesn't matter what this boy does during his next turn. Creation is in play, and therefore I will simply use my strongest attack during the next round. It might be tiring, but it will have to be done.")

Shinsei looked at his field and figured out that his Breeze Gunner had been the only one attacked, since his Holy Swordsman was still in play. (1500/1000) ("Wow, I'm in a real pinch.") He drew. "Heh, I activate Pot of Greed." A smiling green jar appeared on the field. "This lets me draw two cards!" Sliding two more cards off of his deck, the jar exploded. As his eyes traveled over the two cards he smiled winningly. "This'll work!" He inserted a card into his disk. "I place one card face-down and play Emergency Provisions." The face-down card disappeared in a flash of light. "By sending one magic or trap card from my field to the graveyard, I can gain 1000 life points." His life point counter ticked upwards.

Victoran- 6350

Shinsei- 1001

Shinsei kept smiling. "The card I sent to the graveyard was called Celestial Katana, just so you know!" He held up another card. "I activate Re-Fusion! By paying 800 life points I can select one fusion monster in my graveyard and special summon it. Afterwards, it is equipped with this card!" A powerful light appeared on his field. "Like I said earlier, I'm counting on you, Shining Flare Wingman!"

Victoran- 6350

Shinsei- 201

The mighty fusion hero from before appeared on the field and bellowed its battle cry, not frightened in the least by the powerful Creation that stood on Victoran's field. (2500/2100) "For every E-Hero in my graveyard, its attack points increase by 300!" (4900/2100) "Heh, he's back and just as cool as ever!"

"Cool or not, he still cannot defeat Creation!" Victoran frowned in displeasure. Even now this boy was not taking him seriously. ("It's fine though. I will make him pay for his insolence during my next turn.")

"Here I go!" Shinsei held up a card from his hand. "Legend's Spirit allows me to select one Elemental Legend or Legendary Elemental Hero from my field and special summon a monster of the same attribute as it!" He looked at one of the remaining cards in his hand and smiled. "I special summon Celestial Samurai; Kenshin Himura!" (2200/1900) Shinsei's guardian appeared on the field, smiling calmly and fingering the blade of his katana.

Victoran's eyes widened in surprise. "Your Guardian…is a normal card?"

Shinsei shrugged. "My Familiar Summon disappeared, I guess."

Kenshin shrugged as well. "That's too bad for you, Creation. Apparently I'm going to beat you this turn, that I am."

The glowing Knight Incarnate stood quietly, unimpressed. "Your declaration is foolish, you should know you cannot beat me with such low attack points." (60300/4500)

Kenshin nodded sagely. "That is true, that it is. However, I'm not out yet, that I'm not."

Shinsei inserted the last card in his hand into his disk. "I activate Transcendence Fusion. Shining Flare Wingman and Holy Swordsman are my targets, and now they combine!" The two light warriors leapt into the air and were sucked up into a glowing vortex of elemental energy. From within it a form of pure light slowly lowered onto the field. When that light faded, it revealed Shining Flare Wingman wearing golden armor instead of silver. "Legendary Elemental Hero Creation Flare Wingman is special summoned to my field." (3300/2300) It rumbled out a battle-cry and started to glow brightly. "For every card in my graveyard its attack is increased by 300 points." (12900/2300)

Creation scoffed at the new Hero. "Impressive, but against my power of Creation he is nothing."

Kenshin shrugged again. "It can't be helped."

"Yup." Shinsei removed a card from his graveyard and held it up. "I activate Celestial Katana's special ability. When an Elemental Hero or Legendary Elemental Hero is fusion summoned, I may add this card from my graveyard to my hand." He inserted it into his disk. "And then I equip it to Kenshin!" A crystal-blue clear-bladed katana fell from the sky and landed in the samurai's waiting hands. "For every card in my graveyard, Kenshin's attack power is increased by 100 points." (5300/1900) (12600/2300)

Victoran just glowered at him. "Two big monsters, but neither of them is near the true power of my Creation!"

"That's true." Shinsei pointed at Creation Flare Wingman. "Transcendence Fusion's effect activates now! Return to my hand and break my Legendary Fusion!" The ultimate superhero suddenly blew apart into Holy Swordsman and Shining Flare Wingman. "During this turn I cannot use Transcendence Fusion to create a fusion monster that has already been summoned during this game. Therefore, Creation Flare Wingman is forever out of reach."

Victoran could have sworn that Shinsei's eyes had become slotted like a cat's for a moment. "What's with that sly expression? What are you thinking, boy?"

"Oh nothing really?" Shinsei kept smiling. "Just wanted to give you a second to let it sink in. Now then, Transcendence Fusion!" Another shimmering vortex appeared in the sky above him. "Come together, Holy Swordsman and Kenshin!" Both warriors were sucked into the portal. "Emerge, Legendary Samurai of Eternity; Kenshin Himura!" Slowly, Kenshin lowered onto the field once more. (?)

"I can't see his attack points…" Victoran blinked as Kenshin slowly drew his katana. "What do you intend to do? No effect he has could possibly make him capable of matching my Creation."

"Bzzzt! Wrong!" Shinsei gave Victoran a thumbs-down. "Actually, his effect is perfect for this kind of situation!" Kenshin started to glow. "Kenshin Himura, the Battousai, is a legend amongst all. And his power will be shown now!"

Kenshin's eyes were deadly serious. "My attack and defense is equal to the one of three possible things, decided by Shinsei when I am summoned. One, by half the total attack of all warrior monsters in Shinsei's graveyard. Two, by the attack of all monsters on Shinsei's field, which also gives me the power of making sure that you can only attack me while I am in play. Or third, by the difference in life points between Shinsei's opponent and himself."

Shinsei shrugged. "Let's go with life point differences." (6149/6419) "On that note, I may select up to three equipment cards in my graveyard and equip them to Kenshin at this time! Normally I would have to pay 300 life points per card, but any cards I select that were equipped to either of Kenshin's fusion material pieces can be used free of charge." The glowing form of the Celestial Katana appeared in place of the samurai's normal katana. (9249/6419) "And before you go saying that Kenshin still can't win, let me activate his effect."

Kenshin started to glow brightly. "Shinsei selects one technique I am capable of performing and that technique is triggered, regardless of whether or not he owns the card to it."

Shinsei chuckled. "Kenshin already knows what my choice is. Kenshin, attack Creation now!"

Kenshin sheathed his katana and his eyes locked onto the mighty knight of Victoran. "Prepare yourself!" His body started to glow brightly. "Overkill…" His hand grasped the blade of his katana. "…Hiten Mitsurugi Style; Ama Kakeru Ryu no Hirameki!" Everything became darkness for a moment, and then Kenshin slowly sheathed his sword. "That is the end."

Victoran stared in horror as his mighty Creation exploded into nothingness. "Impossible…I lost to him?"

From his hiding place, Kuruske stared at Shinsei in amazement. "He pulled it off…"

Victoran- 0/Vanguard Status damaged; Self-save enabled

Shinsei- 201

Victoran dropped to one knee, his body slowly fading away. "I…will…not…forget this…boy." Then he was gone.

Shinsei grinned to himself, right before collapsing face-first to the ground, his field fading away.

-----------------------

Megumi smiled slightly as she watched a comet of light fly off into the morning sky. "Victoran is lucky that he has achieved level seven and its power of Self Preservation. Without it, that would have been his end. Though I must admit, I wish I knew what had happened exactly."

"_It was a surge of power so quick that Victoran didn't have the time to create a proper guard against it. As such, Shinsei won through both luck and through stupidity."_ The voice sounded oddly amused.

"Stupidity? How was him winning stupid?" Megumi looked perplexed at what the voice has said.

"_The attack he must have used could only have been the ultimate attack of his Guardian. It had a speed beyond senses, and apparently thanks to that Victoran was instantly defeated. Now, here lies the downside of such a maneuver."_ The voice grew stern. _"When a person does such a thing, they are placing themselves in a very dangerous situation. Even the greatest Vanguards do not throw out their ultimate attack for the sheer reasoning that by doing so they put their life on the line. The last attack of a Guardian is the attack that possesses the power to destroy anything in its path, and for that power it needs a source capable of sustaining it."_

Megumi paled visibly. "That was his ultimate attack?" Now she completely understood. He had achieved his status as a Vanguard just yesterday, and yet during the next day he had done something that Veteran Guardians never tried. "His ultimate attack sucks at his Vanguard energy, and if it cannot get enough from that…then it drains his life force, right?"

"_Correct. And such an attack must mean that Shinsei is either dead or dying…there is no way he could still be alive. His Vanguard power was very low when we sensed his return, and it was a miracle he somehow deflected Victoran's attack. But unleashing his ultimate attack was a mistake."_

"We have to go and heal him!" She was about to leap towards the site of the duel, but froze up as she felt something on the horizon behind her. It was like a mighty dark cloud had suddenly fallen over everything around her. ("What is this dark feeling? It feels like desire. Or more precisely, like blood-lust.")

---------------------------

From not too far away, a pair of cloaked forms were watching the same site with intensity similar to Megumi's. "From this feeling, we take it that you are pleased?"

"_But of course."_ The voice that lingered within their minds was rough and predatory, the sounds of a killer speaking. _"It makes me twitch. I want to fight him, I truly want to battle him…a boy, who in just one day, managed to take down one of the Humanity Cross elite…"_ They could almost hear his drooling. _"Wait for a good opportunity, when he is fully healed...and bring him to me."_

"Yes, my lord." The two cloaked figures looked at each other knowingly and then slinked back into the disappearing shadows, patiently waiting for their opportunity to strike.

_To be continued…_


	19. The Hunter

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 19: The Hunter

Airos cursed at under his breath as he ran down another of the car-less streets of the city. ("Where did Andrew get off to?") Right after they had gotten away from Shinsei, the boy had suddenly broken into a run, shouting something about his mother. And then when that huge explosion hit Airos had taken cover. Unfortunately, Andrew didn't stop at that time and now the air duelist was searching all over the city for him. ("At this rate I'm never going to be able to find him!")

--------------------------

Andrew felt his heart pounding in his chest as he made a run for his mother's apartment. ("It's just a few seconds away, I'm almost there!") His arms up and holding his keys, he pounded up the stairs of the building, and upon reaching the second floor nearly kicked the staircase door in. Charging down the rows upon rows of other doors, he almost instantly recognized the door to the apartment he lived in. Pushing the key into the lock, he turned it once and then forced the normally rather sticky door-frame open. "Mom!"

As soon as he ran in, he realized that something was wrong. It was pitch black inside the small living room, and he could feel that someone was already inside. "Who's here? Mom, is that you?"

"No." The replying voice was strangely young, and very cold. "So you're the one who lives here then, with the sickly woman?"

"Where's my mother?" Andrew, despite his non-threatening appearance, tried to use the natural effects of the weak light coming in behind him to make himself appear more dangerous. If this guy was a burglar, then he might just be able to scare him off.

"She is in the bedroom, but for your own sake I will have to stop you from getting to her." The invisible voice in the darkness of the living room was moving towards him now, getting louder. "If you have anything to say about it, then make your case now."

Andrew knew his baseball bat was somewhere near the door, but for the life of him he couldn't remember the exact location. ("I just have to keep him distracted long enough to get my hands on it.") He started to feel around the door-frame carefully. "Why are you keeping me from my mother? If you're here to rob us then take what you want and go."

"Rob you?" The voice sounded rather surprised. "I suppose you're not wrong to make that assumption, but the fact of the matter is that you are completely incorrect. I have no interest in your petty items, and in fact almost find it insulting that your first idea was such a thing." The voice grew louder and a shadowed silhouette could be seen just outside the range of the meager light. "Considering all of the things that have been going on lately, would you immediately think I'm a burglar and not something more sinister?"

Andrew suddenly felt very afraid. Something about this person's voice reflected a deep mix of sorrow and anger that was beyond human. "Just go away!"

"I cannot do that." The speaker stepped into sight of the light, revealing a fluffy shock of fire-red hair and a pair of blood-red eyes. It was a boy no older than fifteen, and yet the way he carried himself made him seem much older. He wore a simple brown t-shirt and brown pants, and on his arm rested a black-toned duel disk. "You smell of my target."

"Your…target?" Andrew blinked in surprise and took a step back. "What are you talking about?"

"There is an energy signature around you similar to the power I was shown before, meaning you have been in contact with my target." The boy noticed the duel disk on Andrew's arm. "You will duel me. If you win, I shall go away. If I win…well, we'll decide upon the circumstances if that happens."

Andrew was about to say that he had no deck, but he remembered the deck that Shinsei had given him before they had parted. ("I don't have time for this, but at this rate I don't have a choice but to fight.") "Fine, I'll take you on!" He removed the stack of cards from his jacket pocket and slammed it into his deck slot, the device humming to life and clicking into place. "Let's…"

"Not here." The boy walked past him and pointed up at the ceiling. "The roof is the best place to hold our match."

----------------------

As the cold wind blew through Andrew's white hair, he felt oddly relaxed despite the fact that he knew almost nothing about the deck he had. ("Please be enough to help me beat this guy.")

"My name is Arrow." The red-haired duelist shuffled his deck and inserted it into his duel disk. "Now, show me your power! Duel!"

Arrow- 4000

Andrew- 4000

Arrow drew. "I shall begin then." Placing the drawn card onto his disk, he barely moved as a blond-haired female warrior holding a sword appeared on his field. "I summon Warrior Lady of the Wasteland (1100/1200) in attack mode. End turn."

Andrew took a shallow breath and drew a card. "I won't bend to you just because of your attitude. My mother needs me." Inserting the drawn card into his hand, he suddenly remembered watching Shinsei duel in their three-way duel. ("You're such an amazing duelist, Shinsei. I…I won't be as good as you are. But I can't give up either!") "I summon Mistress of the Elements!" (300/300) A female priest in prismatic robes appeared on his field.

"300 attack points? Is that all you can muster?" Arrow's expression didn't change at all. "Very well, then I suppose your resolve to see your mother is weak."

"So says you, but then again your opinion of me doesn't really matter in the long run." Andrew pointed at his field, where a pair of face-up continuous trap cards has appeared. "For each attribute of monster in play when this monster is summoned, I may play one continuous trap card from my hand. Since my Mistress is a light and your Lady is an earth, I played two cards!" Light rained down upon his field. "The first card is Heart of Elements. For every attribute in play, a different effect is activated. Because there is an earth in play, one monster on my field gains 500 defense points." (300/800) "And because there is a light in play I may gain half the defense of one monster on my field in life points once per turn."

Arrow- 4000

Andrew- 4400

Arrow shrugged those bonuses off as nothing. "All things considered, that is nothing."

"True, but the other card is the kicker. It's called Mother Nature's Blessing." Andrew smiled as his Mistress started to glow brightly. "For every face-up trap and magic card on my field, one target monster on my field gains 500 attack points!" (1300/800) "Go Mistress, Song of Nature!" His monster started to sing at the top of her lungs, sending shockwaves of power across the field to blow Arrow's Warrior Lady into nothingness. "Alright, first blood is mine!"

Arrow- 3800

Andrew- 4400

Arrow actually looked amused for a moment. "First blood doesn't mean you've won the fight. When Warrior Lady of the Wasteland is destroyed as a result of battle I may special summon an earth warrior type monster with 1500 or less attack points from my deck to my field in attack mode. Come out now, Marauding Captain." A green-armored warrior holding two swords appeared on his field. (1200/800)

Andrew frowned in realization that this meant his attack had helped his opponent set up the field. ("I'm not good enough to bet such important things on this game.") "End turn."

Arrow drew. "I play the magic card Reinforcements of the Army, selecting one level or four lower warrior type from my deck and adding it to my hand. My choice is another Marauding Captain, which I summon." A copy of his other monster appeared in play. "When Marauding Captain is normal summoned I may special summon a level four or lower monster from my hand. My choice is Command Knight." (1200/1900) A female knight in feathered armor appeared on the field next to the two Captains. "When Command Knight is in play, all warrior type monsters on my field gain 400 attack points." (1600/1900) (1600/800x2)

Andrew watched in horror as the Command Knight leapt across the field and slashed through his Mistress easily. "No…that means…" He bit back a yell of pain as he felt the swords of the two Marauding Captains slash his flesh.

Arrow- 3800

Andrew- 800

Arrow sighed. "I shouldn't have expected much more than that. I place two cards face-down on the field and end my turn." As two cards appeared behind his monsters, he crossed his arms across his chest and wondered exactly what this boy could do now. ("He can counter-attack, but somehow I doubt that he will be able to make it.")

Andrew slowly stood up, his gray eyes glimmering in the morning light. "It's my turn!" Sliding the top card off of his deck, he nodded at it. "Pot of Greed lets me draw two cards!" Holding up a new card, he smiled at Arrow in a strangely relaxed fashion. "Let's try this then, Giant Trunade!" A powerful hurricane swept across the field and their magic and trap cards disappeared. "All magic and trap cards in play are returned to their owner's hands." A blue-skinned humanoid dressed in hunter's clothing appeared in play. "I summon Elemental Hunter in attack mode!" (1700/500)

"You can't attack, thanks to the effects of my Marauding Captains…" Arrow widened his eyes slightly as he caught the confident glint in Andrew's own grey orbs. ("Interesting…he isn't worried at all.")

"Here I go! I play Lightning Vortex, discarding one card from my hand to destroy all face-up monsters on your field!" Andrew watched as lightning came crashing down and blew all three of Arrow's monsters into black marks on the rooftop. "Now I'll play Card Destruction! This card effect forces us both to discard our hands and draw cards equal to the number we discarded." He drew two new cards while Arrow drew four. "Hunter, direct attack!" The warrior strung an arrow and launched it across the field, the holographic weapon going through Arrow's body harmlessly.

Arrow- 2100

Andrew- 800

Andrew clenched his fist, his resolve strengthening. ("I can win this, mother! I'll be there soon…") "I place one card face-down on the field and end my turn."

Arrow drew, a slight smile on his face. "What an interesting opponent I have here. Your power is very strange, friend. It's like you're very existence is invisible to me…I can't sense any energy coming from you at all. Not even the most basic of life forces." Then his smile faded. "However, despite your impressive play I still do not believe that you can handle my true power. Therefore, let's see if you can last against this trash deck of mine. I summon Exiled Force!" (1000/1000) A ragged group of warriors appeared on his field. "By sacrificing this card, I can destroy one monster in play! Obviously my choice is your hunter!" Both monsters exploded. "I place two cards face-down and end my turn."

"Draw!" Andrew had no idea what this guy was talking about, but looking at the card in his hand he knew that this was his chance to push the offensive. "I activate the magic card Soul of Light, removing two light monsters from my graveyard and a card from my hand to special summon a level eight or lower light attribute monster card from my deck!" A golden griffin appeared on his field, screeching loudly. "Beast of Gold (?) activates its effect when it is special summoned from my deck by a card effect. I draw cards equal to the difference in our hand size. You have two more cards in your hand than I do, so I draw twice." Sliding two extra cards off of his deck, he pointed at his monster. "For every removed from play light monster I have, this monster gains 700 attack and defense points." (1400/1400) "Direct attack, Sunfire Burst!" His monster unleashed a burning torrent of fire that stopped a few inches from Arrow. "A trap?"

"Correct." Arrow motioned to his now face-up card. "Call of the Haunted allows me to special summon a monster from my graveyard. My choice is Command Knight." The female knight reappeared on his field, sword drawn. "And of course this triggers replay, meaning you may withdraw your attack if you wish." (1600/1900)

Andrew frowned and nodded slowly. "Yes, I will withdraw my attack and end my battle phase. I place one card face-down and end my turn."

Arrow drew. "Now's the time to test your mettle! I reveal Royal Decree! This continuous trap card, while face-up on the field, negates all trap cards activated. This is the moment of truth…can you activate a trap in response?" His now face-up trap card was glowing mildly, its full power not in effect until the chain was resolved. "Hurry, I have other things to do today."

Andrew suddenly smiled. "Reverse cards open! Divine Blaze and Big Burn!"

Arrow blinked in surprise at the combo that had just been revealed. "You…aren't kidding…are you?"

"No, I'm quite serious." Andrew pointed at his face-up Divine Breath. "Divine Breath lets me send one light monster from my deck to my graveyard. Afterwards, one card at random will be chosen from my graveyard. If it is a monster card, then I gain life points equal to the selected monster's attack points, but if it is a magic or trap card…then I take 1000 points of damage." He removed a card from his deck and inserted it into the graveyard. "I choose The Creator (2300/3000) and now Divine Breath activates! Go!" A stack of cards appeared in front of him and started to shuffle itself.

("He only has one monster in his graveyard…and nine magic and trap cards. His chances are one in ten, and yet he did it without a moment's regret.") His red eyes lit with a burning heat that reflected his suddenly ignited passion. "Show me then…your belief that you will succeed!"

"Very well!" Andrew suddenly grabbed one of the cards from the stack, and flipped it over. "The Creator!" His other card started to glow brightly. "Big Burn triggers when a monster card is chosen from any graveyard by an effect! All monsters in both player's graveyards are removed from the game!" His Creator card disappeared, and Arrow's graveyard whined as it spat out its collected warriors. "For every removed from the game light monster I have, my Beast gains 700 attack and defense!" (2100/2100)

Arrow- 2100

Andrew- 3100

Arrow laughed heartily. "Very well, I approve of your resolve to win this duel! For that…" Suddenly he grew deadly serious. "I will show you my true deck and my true power. Do not regret it." His field suddenly exploded into dust. "I activate the magic card Twist of Fate! All cards in my graveyard, removed from play pile, hand, and field all are removed from the duel and I select a new deck to take their place!"

Andrew blinked in surprise at this. "Amazing…"

"Don't worry, it has a cost that hurts. Half of my life points." Arrow removed a different deck from his pocket and replaced it with his warrior deck. "I draw four cards." His eyes looked deeply into Andrew's. "Look into my eyes, and see your fate!"

Andrew felt cold all over…because he was suddenly watching a new scene. It was his body, naked, standing before a giant door that was spewing mist everywhere. ("Where is this place? What's going on?")

"_Welcome to the door of fate."_ A cold voice echoed across the grey void. _"See into your past…and let us see your true self."_

Suddenly Andrew was standing back on the rooftop, and Arrow was moving. But something seemed wrong with his movements. It was so slow…and yet Andrew felt even slower than the slow-motion movements that were coming from Arrow. ("What's the matter with me? What was that gate?")

"Now then, Andrew." Arrow placed a card onto his duel disk. "Let me show you the truth of destiny! Emerge from the flow of time and fate, D-Hero Devil Guy!" (600/800) A white-skinned humanoid wearing a grey and black suit that seemed to imitate a devil appeared on the field, its crimson cape flowing behind it. All around them, the sunlight was completely gone and replaced by deep grey mist. "This is my power…the Heroes of Destiny!"

Andrew just stared at the newly summoned monster in confusion. "D-Hero? Like Shinsei's E-Heroes?"

"Shinsei Zeru uses E-Heroes, does he?" Arrow snickered. "Well, we'll deal with that when we get there, right Devil Guy?" His superhero started to laugh darkly. "Now then, I activate the effect of Devil Guy! Destiny Lord!"

Andrew watched as Devil Guy launched up and punched his Beast right in the face. "Wha…" Then his monster disappeared. "How?"

"Devil Guy, at the cost of my battle phase, may remove one monster on your field by sending it forward in time by two of my turns. Meaning during my second standby phase since I activated the effect, your monster will return. Until then, I'll just end my turn." Arrow watched Andrew patiently, wondering what exactly he would do now. ("I have bared my true power to you…I wonder how long you will last.")

Hands shaking, Andrew drew the top card of his deck. "I won't give up…just because you got lucky." He threw the drawn card onto his duel disk. "Go Element Saurus!" (1500/1200) A large raptor-like dinosaur appeared on his field. "Go now, attack Devil Guy with Dino Flame!" His monster sprayed the dark hero with flame, burning it to a crisp. "I place one card face-down on my field and end my turn."

Arrow- 150

Andrew- 3100

Arrow sighed. "Already I can see I made a mistake. Draw." There was a loud laughing noise and Devil Guy reappeared on his field. "I activate the quickplay magic card Destiny Wheel, reviving one D-Hero from my graveyard." A card appeared behind his Devil Guy. "Now I play Devil's Blessing! When a monster is removed from your field and sent to the removed from play pile by the effect of a monster on my field, you take 700 points of damage! Destiny Lord!" His monster leapt across the field and punched the dinosaur in the face, forcing it forward two turns in time. "I place one card face-down on my field. Now then…stop playing before I break you."

Arrow- 150

Andrew- 2400

Andrew stared at his deck, body trembling now. ("What is this feeling? Why am I so afraid?")

Arrow frowned, and as soon as Andrew had drawn his face-down card flipped up. "I grow tired of your mental turmoil, so let's find out what the problem is, shall we? I activate the continuous trap card Archeologist of Memory! If I guess correctly what kind of card you have drawn, you discard that card and take damage equal to the attack of one level three or lower D-Hero I have in play! I call monster!"

Andrew numbly discarded the drawn Element Magician.

Arrow- 150

Andrew- 1800

Andrew collapsed to his knees, tears welling up in his eyes. ("What's the matter with me?") "End…turn."

Arrow watched his fallen opponent with momentary pity in his eyes. ("Perhaps I overdid it. It's been so long since I've dueled an opponent who could actually take my power without collapsing that I got ahead of myself.") Then he drew. "During this standby phase, your Beast of Gold is special summoned back to your field in attack mode!" (2800/2800) Andrew's griffin reappeared and roared at Devil Guy. "Not that it matters…from my hand I activate the magic card Misfortune! Now at the cost of my battle phase for this turn you take half of the original attack points of a monster you have in play! Beast of Gold, Sunfire Burst!" The monster turned to face Andrew and sprayed him with its burning flame.

Arrow- 150

Andrew- 400

Arrow watched the smoke rising from Andrew's body with sadness. "This is it. Devil's Blessing will finish you. The damage from my full power will break all but the most powerful resolves…prepare yourself! Devil Guy, Destiny Lord!" He watched as his hero leapt into the air above the roaring griffin. "I'll tell you something that will put your mind at ease. The apartment you went into was empty. No one had ever lived there. All that mother stuff you were babbling was pointless."

Andrew's eyes opened slightly. The sadness in his heart didn't argue with this. ("Why am I here then? What is the point?") Suddenly he couldn't recall anything about himself. ("Who am I?")

--------------------------------

"_Why? Why did you do it?" Tears streamed down the face of his brother. "Why did you kill her?"_

---------------------------

Arrow blinked in surprise as Devil Guy stopped in mid-air, fist inches from the Beast of Gold. "What's the matter Devil Guy?"

Andrew slowly stumbled to his feet, his white hair slowly turning darker. "Honestly…did you think that weakling was the real reason you wanted to bring out your full power?" His lips twisted darkly. "Reverse card open." The face-down card on his field was now face-up. "Mirror of the Elements reflects one monster effect back at its owner. In other words…"

Arrow felt that passionate fire in his soul burn brightly as he watched his own Devil Guy suddenly punch itself in the self and disappear two turns forward into the duel. "You…who are you?"

"Me?" The now black-haired Andrew lifted his grey eyes to look right at Arrow's own red eyes. "My name is unimportant, as well as my purpose. To put it simply though, your target is mine. So now I offer you a choice. End this duel now, or during my next turn I crush your few remaining life points and banish your soul to eternal hellfire."

Arrow blinked at this. "Excuse me? You actually think I'm beaten because of that?" Inserting a card into his duel disk, he watched as it appeared face-down on his field. "That's where you're wrong…"

_("Take his offer and escape.")_ A powerful voice spoke in Arrow's head. _("You are not strong enough to beat this one, Arrow.")_

After a few moments, the red-haired boy snarled in displeasure. "This duel is a draw." His face-down card had been Sakuretsu Armor, which would have destroyed the Beast easily. However, he wasn't going to argue with that voice…it was far more wise than he was.

All around them the grey mist faded, leaving them standing in the mid-day sun. After a few more moments of looking at each other, Arrow turned and walked off.

Andrew drew the top card of his deck and snickered. ("Mystical Space Typhoon, as I sensed. That boy was planning on going through with it though, so his reason for stopping must have been outside advisement.") Turning, he walked over to the rooftop edge and looked down at the approaching form of Airos in the distance. "He's found me, eh?"

Glancing behind him, he started to walk towards the staircase. "You've done well in making it here, boy. Just as I knew you would for dear old 'mom." His head snapped back and he laughed crazily. "And now that I've safely arrived here, I need to find Shinsei Zeru before that fool does. I will have that boy's power…the power of the Prodigy of Mankind." His hair started to lighten. "Now then, it's time to let Andrew take over for a little while longer."

_To be continued…_


	20. Hero of the Hero

Disclaimer: No I do not own Yugioh.

Vanguard Generations

Chapter 20: Hero of the Hero

It was like some kind of war zone that surrounded her on all sides. Large craters were carved into the cement, the nearby buildings were decimated, and there were still some small fires going on a short distance away.

Shinsei's battle must have been enormous. That was the only thing going through Megumi's head as she slowly approached the unmoving body of the wonder boy. ("In less than an hour he went from being dead to being able to defeat one of the heads of the Humanity's Cross.") This was like a dream to her, considering that a little more than a day ago she had just finished explaining to him how the entire Vanguard thing worked.

A weak wind rustled through Shinsei's black and gold hair, and he started to stir. His right arm twitched for a moment, tried to lift up, and then collapsed.

Megumi shook her head back and forth slowly. ("He shouldn't be able to move. However, considering what he has done so far I try to avoid being surprised by this stuff.") She picked up her pace, ready to heal him if he needed it.

"Whoa there, little miss." A rather gruff voice spoke out. "I suggest you leave our Master's prize alone."

Megumi felt all of the hairs on the back of her neck stand out straight. ("Demons?") She felt Hantenshi's prescense infuse her with strength to sooth her nerves, but now she was unsure whether to simply rush up and move Shinsei. ("He might be bait for a hastily-made trap.")

A dark cloaked-form stepped out from behind a nearby wall. "Glad to see you're smarter than I originally thought. Now please leave."

"I can't do that." Megumi felt her body pulse with the natural wrath of any Vanguard when faced by one of the perversities of nature known as demons. "I won't let you and your 'master' have this boy. He is a member of the World Shield."

"Really?" The cloaked demon moved a little closer to Shinsei's body and scoffed. "There are no such markings on him. He never joined your group, so therefore he has no ties to you. I suppose then we'll have to determine who gets him with a duel then?"

Megumi sighed. "If we must. Honestly, what would your master want with this boy anyway?"

"That is not your reason to ask, girl." The demon pulled back the hood of her cloak to reveal what would have a normal human face if not for the fact that on top of his black-haired head there was a pair of pointed wolf ears of the same color. "I am Youmei, duelist of the wolf demon kingdom. Now please…" Pulling a duel disk from out of his robes, he strapped it to his arm and inserted his deck into its slot. "Select who will go first."

Megumi activated the duel disk strapped to her arm and shuffled her deck. Placing her hand on top of the stack of cards, she closed her eyes and hummed to herself. "I see…so Heaven condones this duel." Inserting her deck into its slot, she drew her opening five cards. "I will take the first move!"

"As you wish." Youmei drew his opening hand as well. "Let's see how tough the duelists of the World Armor are."

Megumi- 4000

Youmei- 4000

Megumi slid the top card off of her deck calmly. "I summon Librarian of the Heavens (1100/1000) in attack mode." A wizened old angel leaning on a cane and holding a large book under one arm appeared on her field. "When this monster is summoned, I may draw one card. If that card is a magic card, I add it to my hand. If it is a monster or trap, I discard it. If it is a ritual magic card, then I may add it to my hand and draw an additional card." She removed the top card of her deck. "It is the ritual magic card Symphony of the Heavens, meaning I may draw another card." Drawing once more, she fanned out her hand and placed a card from it into her duel disk. "I place one card face-down on the field and end my turn."

Youmei drew, his ears flicking a little as he looked at what he had pulled. ("So…this girl plays Angels? Foolish concept, considering what my deck is.") "I summon Slayer of the Light!" (1000/1000) A demon covered in black armor with a necklace of battered golden halos around its neck appeared on his field. "This monster, when it battles with a light attribute monster, gains 1500 attack and defense points."

Megumi looked at the necklace of angel halos around the creature's neck and frowned. "Disgusting killer…"

"You're one to talk, murderer of my people!" Youmei pointed at the angel. "Attack now!" (2500/2500)

"Reverse card open!" Megumi's face-down card flipped up and a green barrier of light sprang up to block the demon's attack. "Draining Shield negates your attack and gives me life point gain equal to the attack of the monster."

Megumi- 6500

Youmei- 4000

"End turn." Youmei was slightly displeased at how this little girl had stopped his attack, but since it was just the first turn it didn't matter too much. "Those life points you just gained are going to be disappearing shortly."

Megumi drew. "I play the magic card Friendship Sacrifice. This allows me to sacrifice monsters from my deck instead of my hand and field for a ritual summon during this turn." Sliding the Symphony of the Heaven's card into her disk, she removed her deck from its slot and fanned it out. "I offer Thunder Nyan Nyan and Magician of the Celestials to ritual summon Holy Orchestal (1500/1500) from my hand to my field!" Her field was surrounded by golden light as a glowing angel holding a harp in its hands floated down into play. All around a heavenly orchestra of music played. "When this monster is summoned, all dark attribute monsters in play are destroyed." The Slayer of Light howled in pain and exploded into dust. "Orchestral and Librarian, direct attack." Her two monsters released twin blasts of light that literally buried the demon.

Megumi- 6500

Youmei- 1400

As the torrent of light died down, Megumi slid her hands vertically through her deck a couple of times. "When Orchestral deals life point damage, I may draw two cards." Adding two more cards to her hand, she inserted a single one into her disk. "I place one card face-down and end my turn."

Youmei snarled as his vision finally returned to him. "Insolent girl, I'll take your life in the name of the demon race! Draw!" Snapping the top card off of his deck, he slowly smiled. "I play the magic card Crashing the Pearly Gates. This card destroys all face-up angel type monsters in play." A satisfactory smirk crossed his face as both of Megumi's monsters screamed in pain and exploded into nothing. "Now then, I'll continue by summoning Obliterator of Holy Souls (100/100) in attack mode." A cowering demon appeared on his field. "This monster's special ability is that when he deals you life point damage, for every light attribute monster in your graveyard you take 500 points of damage. Now, direct attack!"

Megumi pointed at her face-down card. "Reverse card open, Holy Radiance! By selecting one angel type monster from my graveyard I can prevent you from attacking during this turn with any monsters that have the attack of the graveyard monster or lower."

Youmei snarled and slammed two cards into his disk. "I set two cards face-down on my field!"

Megumi drew. "I summon Ribbon Dancer in attack mode!" (1200/1500) A lithe angel surrounded by a large number of golden ribbons appeared on her field. "When this monster is summoned, one ritual magic or monster card in my graveyard is added to my hand! I choose Orchestral!"

"Reveal Plucking the Wings!" One of Youmei's set cards flipped up. "This quickplay magic card destroys one light angel in play!" A beam of black light slammed into Megumi's monster and blew it apart.

Megumi bristled a little at the fact that this demon's deck seemed to be perfectly set to counter her Heaven Ritual Deck, but she wasn't worried. ("I'll protect Shinsei from these monsters.") "I place one card face-down on my field and end my turn."

Youmei drew. "Your time is running out, girl. I activate the continuous magic card Photosensitive Virus! This card will deal you 1000 life points of damage during your standby phase if you have a light attribute monster in your graveyard." His monster disappeared in a burst of black light. "I offer my monster as a sacrifice to summon Angel Killer!" (0/0) "While this monster is face-up on my field in attack mode it will instantly destroy all light angel type monsters summoned. Also, when it battles with an angel or a light attribute monster it destroys it! End turn."

Megumi took a deep breath at the sight of another of these annoying anti-light cards. "Draw." She barely flinched when Youmei's virus card sent electric shocks through her body.

Megumi- 5500

Youmei- 1400

"I activate the magic card Pot of Greed, drawing two cards." Megumi inserted a new card into her disk. "I play the magic card Ritual Cooker. By selecting one ritual monster card from my hand and removing it from the game, I can special summon that monster without its requirements in three turns from this one! My choice is Orchestral. Also, I summon Angel Blader!" (1700/100) A gold-suited warrior holding two ornate gold daggers appeared on her field. "End turn."

Youmei drew. "Pitiful choice of monsters, or did you forget the effect of my Angel Killer?" His monster howled and the angel monster exploded into dust. "I'm not sure what you were trying to accomplish, but it failed."

"Nope." Megumi watched as Youmei's monster exploded as well. "When Angel Blader is destroyed, I may destroy a monster in play with original attack points less than its own."

Youmei nodded slowly. "Interesting…I place one card face-down on my field and end my turn."

Megumi drew and gritted her teeth as electricity went through her body violently.

Megumi- 4500

Youmei- 1400

"I summon Hysteric Angel!" (1800/500) An glasses-wearing angel holding a book in its arms appeared on her field. "Direct attack!"

"I reveal another Plucking the Wings!" Youmei snickered as another blast of light flew across his field and slammed into the body of the angel, shattering it.

Megumi sighed again. "I'm not even surprised anymore. I place one card face-down on my field and end my turn."

Youmei drew. ("This girl is still taking me lightly, despite the fact that every card in my deck is dangerous to what she uses.") "It's fine, dear girl. I play another Photosensitive Virus and the magic card Final Fuse. This card lets me select two continuous magic cards that I have in play. If both of them are the same cards, then I may activate a third of that card from my deck." A third Photosensitive Virus continuous magic card appeared on his field. "During each of your standby phases, you'll be taking 3000 life points of damage. You have two turns. End turn."

Megumi flexed her hand and drew, right before she was forcing herself not to bite her own tongue as pain flared through her entire body.

Megumi- 1500

Youmei- 1400

"I activate the magic card Graceful Charity, allowing me to draw three cards and then discard two." Megumi did so with a smile on her face. "Whew…I actually thought I might lose to you too."

("You still will, thanks to my face-down trap card.") Youmei snapped up his hand and his face-down card flipped up. "I reveal the trap card Threatening Roar, preventing you from attacking this turn. That means during my next turn you'll be defeated!"

Megumi pointed at one of her set cards. "I reveal the trap card Necro Ritual. This card allows me to return any discarded monsters from my graveyard back to my hand, but they cannot be discarded or summoned during this turn. They can only be sacrificed or used for a fusion. At the end phase of this turn they will be sent to the graveyard once more!" Two cards left her graveyard. "My discarded cards were Zolga and Mudora!" (1700/1000) (1500/1800)

"Any ritual you summon won't be strong enough to win, girl." Youmei licked his lips in anticipation. He didn't expect he would get so lucky that to take down a Vanguard while he was out here.

Megumi grinned. "Ritual? Not quite." She snapped up one of the cards in her hand. "I activate the magic card Polymerization."

"A fusion?" Youmei looked momentarily surprised, but quickly recovered. "That doesn't matter, it will still be the same in the end. All I have to do next turn is draw and end my turn to finish you off."

"True." Megumi snapped the Mudora and Zolga cards in her hand over. "I fuse Zolga and Mudora together to summon Guardian of the Ancient Sanctuary." A cloaked angel slowly lowered onto her field. (2000/2000) "For every angel in my graveyard, I now gain 500 life points and for every monster in my graveyard my Guardian gains 100 attack points." (2800/2000)

Megumi- 5000

Youmei- 1400

Youmei snapped the top card off of his deck. "You think a little life point gain will stop me? I activate the magic card Angelic Hell! For every light and/or angel type monster in your graveyard, you take 300 life points of damage!" Lightning came crashing down onto Megumi's body violently. "Now I end my turn and you lose!"

Megumi- 2600

Youmei- 1400

Megumi drew. "During my draw phase, I activate the effect of my face-down Hallowed Life Barrier trap card, discarding one card from my hand to make all life point damage to me this turn zero!" There was an explosion of light as Orchestral reappeared in play on her field. (1500/1500)

Youmei grimaced but looked down at his Virus cards in his disk. ("It's fine. These cards can be sacrificed to create a life point barricade for the turn equal to the number of itself in play before activation. Therefore if I sacrifice all of these cards I'll have a 6000 life point blockade against the girl's attacks this turn. Also, when all three of these cards are sent to my graveyard during the same turn, they revive themselves. In other words, I'll still win.") "During your standby phase, I send all of these cards to my graveyard to activate their effect! For each of itself in play before activation, a 1000 life point shield is placed around my life points from the effects and attacks of all angel type monsters!" His three cards exploded and a massive barrier of black and red energy appeared around him. (Angel Type Damage Barrier: 6000)

Megumi pointed at her Guardian. "I don't run this fusion for no reason. Its final special ability lets me sacrifice it to special summon a ritual monster from my hand without sacrifice or need for the magic card!" Her angel disappeared in a golden flash, replaced by a golden angelic knight holding an arcane-symbol covered shield and sword in its hands. "I ritual summon Zerato Guardsman in attack mode." (2500/2300)

Youmei just sneered. ("In total that's 4000, nowhere near enough damage.")

Megumi opened her field magic card slot. "Don't worry too much, but you have lost. I activate the field magic card Ancient Sanctuary!" A giant angelic temple exploded into the sky behind her, filling the ground with clouds to make it seem as if they were floating in the heavens. "When Ancient Sanctuary is in play Zerato Guardsman may sacrifice its chance to attack this turn to deal you its attack in damage!"

Youmei snarled as the barrier around him grew thinner. (Angel Type Damage Barrier: 3500)

Megumi snapped up her other hand card. "I activate Fusion Recovery to return Mudora and Polymerization from my graveyard to my hand!" A strong-framed angel warrior holding a pair of daggers appeared on her field. "I then summon Mudora in attack mode, and for every angel in my graveyard it gains 200 attack points!" (1500/1800) - (2900/1800)

Youmei did a few quick calculations in his head. "You may be able to tear down my barrier, but you won't affect my life points enough to beat me with that kind of power!"

Megumi slid the Polymerization card into her graveyard. "I activate the effect of Orchestral. When there is an Ancient Sanctuary in play and I discard one magic card from my hand, I can deal you 400 points of damage per angel type monster I have in play!" (3x4001200)

Youmei gasped as the barrier grew even thinner. (Angel Type Damage Barrier: 2300) "No…that means…"

"Mudora, attack the barrier now!" Megumi smiled calmly as her monster's daggers slashed through the barrier and into Youmei roughly. "This is for your prejudice against the servants of heaven, so remember it well." (2900-2300600)

Megumi- 2600

Youmei- 800

"Orchestral, attack his life points directly!" A holy blast of light swallowed up the demon duelist, and when the light cleared he had disappeared. "Retreated or destroyed, I wonder…oh well."

Megumi- 2600

Youmei- 800

Turning to face the collapsed Shinsei, Megumi gently helped him to stand up and started to move in the direction of the World Shield safe-house. "You've been nothing but trouble so far…"

-----------------------------

From within a shadowed throne room, a dark form sat in silence and looked upon the image of his servant's failure. "Youmei was no match for her. It was to be expected, but still…" The wine glass in his hand was placed down on the arm of his throne and the shadowed king stood up slowly. "For now I will wait for the boy to recover naturally, and we shall see where he goes. I have a feeling like it will require little effort to bring him to me…and at that time I will push his powers to the maximum. That or I will destroy him completely."

_To be continued…_


End file.
